Conquering Hoenn
by DiscoStu09
Summary: AU: Ash met Scott after the Silver Conference and conquered the Kanto Battle Frontier before heading to Sinnoh, followed by Unova and Kalos. Finally, Ash competes in the Hoenn League and is determined to take the title and earn the right to compete against the Hoenn Elite Four! Rated M to be safe.
1. Prologue - Ever Grande Conference

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

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 **Summary: In an alternate universe, Ash met Scott after the Silver Conference and conquered the Kanto Battle Frontier before heading to Sinnoh, followed by Unova and Kalos. Finally, Ash competes in the Hoenn League and is determined to take the title and earn the right to compete against the Hoenn Elite Four!**

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 **This first chapter takes place at a later point in the story. From the next chapter and onward details his journey through Hoenn until he gets to this point. Then obviously will come the Ever Grande Conference.**

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 **Prologue** ** **–** Chapter 1 – Ever Grande Conference**

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Thousands had flocked to see this event. Currently all of the Pokémon Trainers that had survived the preliminary rounds were all gathered in the main stadium to listen to the inspiring words of the Pokémon League President, Charles Goodshow and for the Moltres flame to be lit. There wasn't a single empty seat in the who stadium that contained up to 100,000 people, and as a young man with brown hair ran up the large staircase with a Meowth in brown boots running by his side, the crowd grew eager in their anticipation.

The official opening for the tournament was usually held during the day, but this time the organizers decided to host the event at night for a more appealing event. And it certainly was. The crowd had been given such a treat today. First they got to witness all of the Pokémon Trainers that had passed the preliminaries do a lap of the stadium with the Pokémon that they had won with. Even more thrilling was the exhibition match – a simple one on one battle – between Steven, the Hoenn Champion, and the man that used to wear the title, Wallace.

Now the night was ready to climax as the trainer placed the Moltres flame onto the sacred light torch, and the crowd erupted into a loud, ferocious cheer. To further emphasis the moment, fireworks began lighting up the sky. Everyone watched in awe at the sight of all the different colours ranging from red to blue to yellow to purple light up the sky.

Among the 256 remaining challengers, stood Ash Ketchum, with his beloved companion Pikachu on his shoulder, both staring up at the fireworks with excitement. The eighteen year old decided to wear the same kind of clothes that he wore when he first started his Pokémon journey, as a remembrance to when he had first competed in an official Pokémon League.

From the start of his Hoenn journey, Ash had been determined to win the league for sure this time, and he still believed that he could. However as he glanced around to see the familiar faces among the trainers competing, Ash knew that this was going to be the hardest and most intense competition that he had ever competed in.

The rivals that he had encountered during his journey through Hoenn – Brendan, Morrison, Tyson, Wally, Hilda and even May's little brother Max – were all competing. However there were also many of Ash's rivals that he had competed against in previous regions also taking part in this tournament. Stephan, Cameron, Bianca, Conway, Nando, Calem, Sawyer, Trip, Barry and Paul were all here to claim the title.

He couldn't wait until tomorrow for the competition to start!

"Pika, pika!" The electric mouse and his oldest companion shared in his excitement. Ash knew that Pikachu was more eager to get the tournament underway than any of his Pokémon, except possibly Charizard, Sceptile and Greninja. Ash, with Pikachu's consent of course, had opted to not use Pikachu whenever he battled against one of his rivals throughout his journey through Hoenn. None of them, not even Paul, would be able to anticipate just how much Pikachu had grown over the past year.

Focusing his attention away from the fireworks, Ash looked over at the platform high up in the stands where the Hoenn Elite Four all sat. He recognised the formidable and intimidating Dragon type Pokémon Master, Drake, and Ash could easily recall the battle he and Charizard had against his Salamence. It had easily been the most intense and incredible battle that Ash had ever experienced, even greater than his battle against Articuno or against Brandon's Regice.

Ash needed to battle the Dragon Master again, but Drake would only accept an official match. That meant, not only did he need to win the Ever Grande Conference but he would also have to defeat the other three members of the Hoenn Elite Four. Speaking of the other members, Ash hadn't met any of them, but he wasn't surprised to see that Wallace wasn't among them. After he had been defeated by Steven, he had stepped down from the Elite Four, deciding to focus his attention on his real passion, and that was Pokémon Contests.

"Chu! Pika!" Pikachu squeaked happily, pointing up at another section in the stands. Ash looked in that direction to see most of his loved ones had come to see him compete. Brock, Tracey, Gary, Clemont, Bonnie, Cilan, Dawn, Misty, Iris, Serena, Tierno, Shauna, Trevor and May were all seated together, and somehow Brock and Tracey had got hold of a sign that said 'GO ASH!'

Unfortunately his mother couldn't make it, as things were always really busy at the restaurant, and Professor Oak had much research to do but he knew that they both would be watching his matches closely.

Ash was touched by how much his friends cared about him, as he knew some of them had come from other regions just to see him compete, and he vowed to not let them down.

As the Fireworks ceased firing, and dissipated in the air, Charles Goodshow got up on the stand and addressed the Pokémon Trainers one final time.

"This concludes the opening ceremony for the Ever Grande Conference!" The elderly man declared to the loud cheers of the crowd. Mr. Goodshow waited for the crowd to silence before continuing, "Now if you would all divert your attention to the big screen…" He signalled over to the large screens, one on either side of the stadium so all the fans had view of one. "We shall declare the first qualifying round matchups!"

On the screen, the face of every competitor appeared on a card before they were all flipped over and began to shuffle. The speed that it moved at made it impossible for anyone to follow the card that had been theirs. After thirty seconds, all of the cards had stopped, with 256 cards split up into 128 pairs.

"In order to get past the qualifying rounds, trainers must win up to two double battles and a triple battle!" Mr. Goodshow announced to everyone's surprise. Triple battles were quite rare after all and had never been introduced in an official conference before, until now that is. "Following that, in order to win the tournament, a trainer must win up to five full battles in a row! Now let's reveal the matchups for the first qualifying round!"

Instantly the cards on screen flipped over revealing the matchups, and Ash's eyes widened slightly as he found his own.

He was up against Cameron right off the bat!

Immediately he searched out for his friend and found him a few rows back with his trusted Lucario at his side. The moment they made eye contact, they both grinned in eagerness at the upcoming battle. It was a rematch that Ash had been hoping wanting for over two years after losing to him in the Vertress Conference. While he preferred to get payback with a full battle, he would take the chance with a double battle.

He also made sure to take notice of the time and place where the match would be scheduled. It was at 12 noon tomorrow at Stadium C.

* * *

Just after 12 in the morning, Ash had been unable to sleep and walked out onto the balcony to stare up at the stars and the bright full moon. It was a cool night, much to Ash's delight. He was only in his blue pyjama bottoms, leaving his lean muscular upper body naked. Placing his badge case on the rail in front of him, he opened it up to reveal all eight badges that he had collected throughout his recent journey.

These eight badges were the proof of his achievements in the past year but they didn't show everything that he had done. Out of the regions that he had travelled through, this one had easily been the most difficult. And he wasn't just referring to the Gym Leaders.

He had battled against many difficult trainers including many of his rivals, and taking on Team Magma and Team Aqua certainly had its challenges. Not to mention the legendary faceoff between the Primal forms of Groudon, Kyogre and Mega Rayquaza. The sheer power that those three Legendary Pokémon wielded was incredible. Even through Mega Evolution, Ash knew that there was no way any of his Pokémon would ever be able to match them in power, they were legendary for a reason – though they would never stop trying.

It wasn't just dealing with villains and out of control legendry's that made this journey difficult, but he had his own personal problems to deal with. While he learned about Mega-Evolution when he was in Kalos, he didn't get his first Mega Stone until he came here to Hoenn. After seeing Korrina back in Kalos struggle with her Mega-Evolving Lucario, Ash was prepared to go through a similar ordeal, but it had been far worse than he imagined.

He had come close to dying several times in his life, but he never thought that one of his own Pokémon would almost kill him. That had been the darkest time in his life and the same for some of his Pokémon, and he wondered if it was an event that would always haunt them.

Ash shook off those thoughts, as each day it became easier to deal with, but Ash knew that deep down that they would all have to confront the issue. And he would need to do it soon.

One other major issue also occurred.

For the first time in his life he found himself having girl troubles. Granted looking back he could see why everyone got a kick out of how dense he was when it came to girls and romance when he was younger. However over the last couple of years, he **had** noticed girls and there were several that he had been attracted to but he avoided following through with his feelings, more content to work on his Pokémon Training.

However that changed this year. And his feelings caused him quite a few problems because it was hard enough to deal with falling in love with one girl, but the major problem that he had was that he fell in love with **two** girls. If that wasn't surprising enough, then the result would be astonishing. Even now, Ash still didn't understand how things worked out so well and if went back to his younger self that had just arrived in Hoenn, there was no way that his younger self would believe him.

Suddenly Ash was broken away from his thoughts when a pair of arms wrapped around his stomach. Ash blushed when felt her large soft cotton covered breasts pressing into his back. "What're you still doing up, Ash?" A soft voice whispered in his ear.

"Just thinkin' 'bout my match tomorrow." Ash answered, while softly caressing her arms. "Cameron's an energetic, eccentric and a quite forgetful guy, but he's got some tough Pokémon. Last time we battled, his Hydreigon knocked out two of my Pokémon and his Riolu – who evolved into Lucario during the battle – took out three of my Pokémon, including Pikachu."

Ash's girlfriend remained quiet for a moment and Ash wondered what she was thinking about. He didn't move though as he was quite content in the position he was in.

"After everything I've seen since we met, there's nothing that you can't do." She whispered, tightening her grip on him slightly. "Remember your battle with my dad?"

Ash grunted lightly, clearly remembering the battle against easily the best Normal type Pokémon that he had ever come across.

"You learned from it." His girlfriend whispered confidently, "Remember how crazed my annoying little brother was when you battled him again?" She chuckled lightly, her laugh was better than any song. "Like everyone, you make mistakes, Ash, but unlike most, you learn from them. You don't shy away from them, like most others do, like _I've_ done, you accept them! Even better, you gain the resolve to never make the same ones again!"

The trainer from Pallet Town let out a small grin. Truly, he had improved in that aspect over the past year. And it was thanks to the girl that had her arms around him. When they first met, he became her mentor and taught her all he knew about Pokémon, and how to raise and train them. By teaching someone everything he knew, it somehow made him mature and he was able to understand and accept any mistakes he made.

That simple maturity had staggering effects on the way he battled, and the way he trained.

Ash lightly released her arms on him, allowing him to turn around so he was facing her directly. Immediately his eyes found her light blue crystal eyes and his own arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her to him, and he resisted the urge to glance down at her large globes that were being crushed against his chest. Her arms that had moved to his lower back was brought up and draped over his shoulders.

"You're gonna win it all, I know it!" She assured him, and Ash couldn't help but believe her. He could easily see the belief and the love radiating in her eyes. Swiftly, Ash brought his lips down to hers in a searing kiss, and she eagerly responded, allowing his tongue entrance. As if in a trance, they walked back into their room without breaking the kiss. Eventually Ash broke the kiss, and then rested his forehead gently against hers.

"Still can't believe how lucky I am." Ash murmured softly. "How did I get so lucky?"

"Well for one, you didn't constantly stare at my boobs when we first met." His girlfriend, May, teased him.

Ash responded with a slight smirk, "Trust me, it took a lot of willpower. Plus it helped a lot seeing Brock getting slapped by girls for staring at their breasts over the years. Although, I have to admit, I snuck a glance whenever I could… But now that we're dating," Ash broke eye contact with her to look down at her large mounds pressing against his chest. "I'm allowed to look, right?"

May laughed lightly as she felt his right hand slowly sliding up the side of her stomach, "Yeah, you can look, but no touching, not yet."

Ash pouted, and returned his right hand to his girlfriend's waist.

May raised herself high enough so her mouth was right next to Ash's left ear and whispered seductively, "I know you don't need it, but here's a little incentive for you to win tomorrow. Win, and you can touch them."

Ash beamed at the offer, and suddenly he didn't know whether he would was more excited for the possibility of advancing to the next round in the tournament or the opportunity to feel up his girlfriend.

"I'm the luckiest guy alive." Ash grinned at her.

May grinned widely and glanced back towards their bed where another girl slept peacefully. "Yep! You really are." She let out a sly grin, "Not many girls would agree to share a guy, you know." She gave him a light kiss on the lips, "You're very lucky that she and I were attracted to both boy and girls, and that you're an incredible guy."

"I wouldn't say that." Ash shook his head, "You're the one that's incredible! You both are!" He said firmly.

May blushed lightly, but she gave him a pleased smile. "Remember when we had to tell our parents about are unique relationship?" The brunette giggled when she felt Ash shiver.

"Remember when we had to stare down Team Aqua controlling Kyogre and Team Magma controlling Groudon?" Ash rebutted, but he didn't give his girlfriend a chance to respond, "That was child's play compared to confronting the 'rents, especially yours. My mum took it quite well, surprisingly."

May took a step back, grabbing both his hands, "Not so tense now, are you?"

Ash blinked, and was startled to realise that she was right. He was feeling quite relaxed now.

May pulled him towards the bed, "Come to bed, Ash, you've got a big day tomorrow."

Within ten minutes, May had drifted off into the land of dreams, and Ash was slowly beginning to doze off, with both of his girlfriends curled up into his side. Ash took them both in for a moment, and it still amazed him how much had changed over the past year. He had fallen so hard in love with them over the past year and now he couldn't remember how he lived the past few years without them. Placing a kiss on each of their forehead, Ash leant back on his pillow and stared at the ceiling.

With a glance to his right, he saw Pikachu cuddled up comfortably at the corner of the bed, sleeping peacefully. Ash smiled slightly, once again he and his little buddy had one hell of an adventure getting to this moment.

Ash's final thoughts before he drifted off was on wondering on whether he should use Pikachu against Cameron tomorrow. He knew the electric mouse wanted to get payback on Lucario.

Eventually he drifted off in the arms of the two women that he loved.

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 **End of Chapter**

 **If you like it, then please leave behind a review. If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

 **Hey! I'm back after a long hiatus! Welcome to the rewrite of my Conquering Hoenn Fanfic!**

 **Now the first thing I need to address is my update schedule because in the past, I haven't been reliable in regular updates, and sorry to say, it's unlikely to change. This story will be split up into different arcs, and I won't be updating any of the chapters within the arc until they are all finished. They will then be released weekly to give me more time on the upcoming chapters.**

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 **I've put a lot of planning into this fanfic, and I'm deadly serious on finishing it. Whether I can get it done within a year, or ten years, I'm going to finish it.**

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 **I've already decided on what Pokémon everyone will catch, what ones will evolve, and who gets Mega-Evolution. I know exactly who Ash is going to battle with in each gym, and how the battles are going to end. There may be some alterations to the story depending on what happens in the Pokémon XY & Z anime, but it shouldn't be anything significant.**

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 **Each Pokémon will be capable of learning up to eight moves.**

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 **The only thing that I am undecided upon is the identity of Ash's other girlfriend. It was quite obvious that I deliberately didn't describe anything about her except for the fact that Ash loves her. I've worked out several different scenarios on different girls, but I can't choose who to pick, so I'm going to let all of you, the readers, decide.**

 **The possible girls are:**

 **Dawn**

 **Serena**

 **Hilda**

 **Misty**

 **Iris**

 **Rosa**

 **Shauna**

 **Leaf**

 **The poll will close on Friday night, and the pairing will be decided.**


	2. Divergence

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

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Before you begin the chapter, I'd like to take a moment to give my regards and best wishes to all those in Paris after the horrifying incidents. I'm absolutely devastated for all those that have lost loved ones in these horrendous violence acts. I sincerely hope all of the innocent people that were killed will rest in peace and for all those injured and traumatised make a speedy recovery.

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 **The Past – Chapter 2 – Divergence**

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 **6 ½ years ago…**

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12 ½ year old Ash Ketchum walked along the main road that would lead them out of Viridian City with the two people that he had met when he first started his journey. The short tempered red head that had become like a sister to him, Misty, and the calm, wise older teen that Ash thought of as an older brother, Brock.

The three of them had travelled over two regions and a multiple islands, yet they had never walked slower than they did now. Even Pikachu – who was sitting on Ash's shoulder – was feeling subdued. None of them truly wanted to leave Viridian City because the moment they did, then they would have to split up. Brock had some errands that he needed to complete back home, although he had yet to inform them of this, he was simply stalling. Misty, on the other hand, was forced to go back to Cerulean to take over the responsibilities of the Cerulean City Gym.

Ash naturally had been upset about this but he didn't let it show, instead congratulating her happily. It was a logical step for her to take if she wanted to become the best Water type Pokémon Trainer, and Ash had full faith in her abilities to successfully take on the many challengers that would take her on. She was almost as good as a battler as he was and he just finished in the top 8 in the latest Silver Conference. He had only been a Pokémon Trainer for 2 ½ years, which just showed his and, most importantly, his Pokémon's incredible talent.

Misty had taken his happiness the wrong way, thinking that he was glad she was leaving, when he was just glad that she had the chance to get closer to her dream. After another annoying encounter with the Team Rocket trio, who involved another trio of losers in their plan, Ash was able to patch things up with Misty.

"I guess we can't put this off any longer, can we?" Misty said sadly, looking ahead down the road where she could see the forest outside of Viridian.

In another universe, Ash nodded, and the trio left Viridian City before coming to a fork in the road where they would split ways. Misty would go on to be a successful Gym Leader, while Brock would continue travelling with Ash through three more regions – Hoenn, Kanto, and Sinnoh – before becoming a Pokémon Doctor. Ash, meanwhile, would continue to travel through different regions making new friends, catching new Pokémon, and dealing with organisations that tried to capture and use Legendary Pokémon for their own selfish purposes. Despite all that, he would still never win a league, the closest would be finishing in the top 4 in the Sinnoh and Kalos league.

However in this universe, in an attempt to spend a bit more time with Misty and Brock, Ash had another idea.

"Wait! I wanna go check out the Viridian Gym!" Ash declared, and quickly turned into the right intersection. The Viridian Gym had been destroyed when Ash defeated Team Rocket and gained the Earth Badge. The young trainer from Pallet Town was curious to see if it had been rebuilt.

"Ugh!" Misty groaned, resisting the urge to smack her forehead in exasperation.

Brock chuckled lightly, "2 ½ years of travelling and he still lacks any directional skills." The Viridian Gym was in fact in the opposite direction to the one Ash was travelling down.

"Wrong way, Ash!" Misty called out, before heading down the left intersection with Brock following closely. Cursing, Ash hurried after them with Pikachu clinging to his shoulder tightly.

* * *

Driving along the streets in his red, open roof sports car, the wind blowing in his face, the head of the Kanto Battle Frontier, Scott, was grumbling about the restricting speed limits that he was forced to abide by in the city.

He had just come back from the Orange Archipelago searching for trainers that could possibly challenge his Battle Frontier, but he was met without any success. Although he did get some names of trainers that had some potential, and of course, the name of the boy that managed to defeat Drake and win the Orange League.

Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town.

Drake had been the Head Leader of the Orange League for over six years now, and he had never been defeated. He's an incredible trainer that could be so much more than the leader of the Orange League, but he seemed more content being challenged than being the challenger.

Naturally he became interested in Ash, and since he was from Pallet Town then the obvious source to get information on was from Professor Oak. He was expecting to hear about a seasoned trainer, one that had dedicated at least a decade to training Pokémon, but he wasn't prepared for what the professor informed him.

Drake had been defeated by an 11 ½ year old boy. That meant Ash had only been a Pokémon Trainer for a year and a half… astonishing. It didn't take long for Scott to discover that Ash finished in the Top 16 in the Indigo Plateau Conference and Top 8 in the Silver Conference. Scott had been taken back by his placement in the Indigo Conference. Ash had defeated Drake only a few months after competing in the Kanto League, and Scott found it hard to believe that Ash could improve drastically in the time.

Professor Oak was all too eager to explain, and Scott could easily see how proud the famous professor was of young Ash. Learning that Ash lost in the Indigo Conference because his disobedient Charizard decided to take a nap in the middle of the arena instead of battling a Pikachu. To learn that Ash had tamed the powerful fire lizard only a few months after the Indigo Conference further impressed Scott. He knew a lot of trainers, especially at that age, would act rashly and immaturely after being humiliated like that in front of thousands of people and release the Pokémon or just avoid using them.

Yet Ash – who was still just a boy – persisted in training a Pokémon that cost him a further placement in the Pokémon League, and eventually gained its respect and trust. Scott then managed to get some footage of Ash performing in the Silver Conference and witnessed Charizard defeat three Pokémon in one match, and two of those Pokémon had a type advantage. Though Ash lost the next round, finishing in the top 8, Scott could easily tell that the boy had the potential to take on his Battle Frontier. Professor Oak informed him that the last time he had talked to Ash, he had been heading to Viridian City, and so Scott had rushed to Viridian in hopes of catching the young man.

In another universe, Scott was unable to find Ash as the young trainer had already left Viridian City, and he would receive a call about some potential trainers in the Seafoam Islands. Scott wouldn't meet Ash until a year later.

However because of Ash's decision to check out the construction of the new Viridian Gym, Scott was fortunate to come across the young trainer standing outside the half built building with an orange haired girl with a Togepi in her arms, and a bike leaning against her waist and a tall dark skinned male.

Scott parked his car at the side of the road, and after jumping out of his car, he immediately called out to the trio, "Hey there! You all Pokémon Trainers?!"

All three of them turned towards him as he approached. Scott immediately put his game face on. He would have to pretend that this meeting was completely coincidence as he didn't want the young man to know that Scott had been studying and searching for him in particular.

"Uh yes." Ash – the only one of the three that he knew – answered him.

"Technically, I'm a Pokémon Breeder, though I used to be the Pewter Town Gym Leader." The older male replied, "I'm Brock."

Scott nodded politely, before addressing the other two, mainly Ash, "Hi, I'm Scott and I'm an agent."

"Nice to meet you." Ash grinned, and the electric mouse let out a 'Pika-Pika' in greeting.

"You both must be here for a Gym Battle, unfortunately it will still be a while before the gym's up and running." Scott said, "Whatcha' names?"

"I'm Misty, a Water type Pokémon Trainer." The orange haired girl informed him.

"I'm Ash, and this is Pikachu." He signalled to the electric mouse on his shoulder, "Thanks, but I've already got this Gym Badge."

"Then you must be pretty good." Scott commented with a wide grin, "Maybe you'd qualify for the Battle Frontier."

"Battle Frontier?" Ash frowned, having not heard of such a thing. "What're you talking about? What's that?"

"Pika?"

"I've heard that name before… but I can't remember where?" Brock murmured quietly, as Misty gave him an inquisitive glance.

"Well now I'm glad you asked." Scott said brightly, confident that this young trainer would accept the challenge. "Okay, I'll explain how it works. The Battle Frontier is made up of seven battle facilities spread out through Kanto. Each of the facilities has a Frontier Brain, basically the same thing as a Gym Leader, but very powerful. Challengers have to battle and defeat the Frontier Brain in order to earn that site's Frontier Symbol."

"What's a Frontier Symbol?" Ash interrupted curiously.

"Sort of like a Gym Badge from that Frontier, but there's a catch. You will be given the location of six facilities and only if you earn all six of those Frontier's Symbols will you be given the location of the secret one, the seventh." Scott answered.

"Hey!" Ash beamed excitedly, along with Pikachu, "That's sounds pretty cool to me!"

"Alright!" Scott's sunglass seemed to flash in victory. He truly hoped that this young trainer could at least unlock the secret location. The last few challengers hadn't been successful.

"I've gotta admit, this Battle Frontier sounds interesting." Brock noted. No doubt Ash was going to compete in it and he hoped that he could get his errands back at home done quickly so he could re-join his young friend.

"Well, Ash, what'd ya say?" Scott asked him.

"Yep! I'll do it!" Ash firmly answered, pumping his fist.

"Pikachu!"

"Are you interested in competing as well, young lady?" Scott inquired. He had only come here for Ash, but he wouldn't pass up the chance for another challenger to take on his Battle Frontier and she had been travelling with Ash, so he was confident that she had some talent.

"I wish I could." Misty answered sadly, feeling genuinely disappointed on missing out. "Unfortunately I've got to take over the Cerulean Gym."

"I understand." Scott nodded, "I wish you all the best. There will be many challenges you will face being a Gym Leader."

Misty nodded, but let out a confident grin, "I know, but I'm ready to meet and beat them!"

Suddenly Scott's phone vibrated and he grimaced when he saw the name of one of his scouts on the screen. He cancelled the call, mentally promising to call him back in a moment. If one of his scouts was calling him, then no doubt he would have to do some more travelling.

Scott signalled the trio to follow him as he led them back to his car. Once in reach, he pulled out a card out of the glove compartment and gave it to Ash. "This is my phone number and email. Unfortunately I'll most likely be out of the region for a couple of weeks to scout out some more trainers. Trainers won't come to the Battle Frontier by themselves, I've gotta keep looking for them. So give me a call when you're ready to begin taking on the Battle Frontier. I'll give you all the details then. I'll see you again soon, Ash. I know you'll be great!"

"Thanks! I'm really glad I ran into you today, Scott!" Ash said gratefully.

"Pikachu!"

Scott simply smiled after getting behind the wheel, "Later!" He called out as he drove away.

"Bye!" The trio plus Pikachu waved.

"The Battle Frontier…" Ash murmured as he watched Scott drive away. "Yeah!" He pumped both fists in the air.

"I know this sounds exciting Ash, but weren't you planning on going to the Hoenn region?" Misty couldn't help but inquire. The moment Ash had seen Harrison's Blaziken, she knew that he had set his sights on travelling to Hoenn after the Silver Conference. So she was surprised to see him passing on the chance to explore a new region and catch new kinds of Pokémon.

Rubbing the back of his head, and with a sheepish laugh, Ash admitted, "I'd completely forgotten about that."

"Don't know why I'm surprised." Misty groaned, "Typical Ash."

"The Hoenn region isn't going anywhere." Brock quickly stated, interrupting the inevitable fight about to break out between his two friends. "In fact, taking on this Battle Frontier could be good training for you Ash."

"That's true," Ash grinned widely, "and all of my Pokémon will be much stronger when I take on the Hoenn League."

"We better be going." Misty said unhappily, ruining the good mood as she noticed the sun had begun to slowly descend. "It's getting late."

"I suppose so." Ash huffed upset. He really wasn't looking forward to parting with Misty.

"HOLD EVERYTHING!" Brock suddenly shouted, scaring Ash, Misty and Pikachu.

"What's gotten into you, Brock?! You scared the hell out of me!" Ash demanded, clenching his fists.

Brock figured this was the best time to tell them. "Actually, I've also gotta go home right away. I got an email saying I needed to go back and take care of some errands and stuff and I almost forgot."

"How could you forget something like that?" Ash retorted.

"Ah…" Brock looked away sheepishly, "I'm not sure exactly."

"Maybe because you didn't want to leave." Misty smirked, understanding just how he felt.

"Probably." Brock smiled.

"I know Brock, I understand." Misty assured him.

By the time half of the sun had set over the horizon, the trio parted ways. Misty would never again travel with either Ash or Brock through a whole region, but their friendship remained as strong as ever.

* * *

"The Kanto Battle Frontier, huh?"

After returning home to his mother, and after spending the night detailing all of his adventures in the Johto region, Ash headed out to Professor Oak's laboratory in the morning. He was eager to see most of his Pokémon, the exceptions being Charizard and Squirtle who were off training, and to inform Professor Oak about the Battle Frontier.

Currently Tracey was out feeding the Pokémon, and Pikachu was out hanging with all of Ash's Pokémon, while Ash and Professor Oak sat on opposite couches. The elderly professor took a sip of his tea, processing everything that Ash had told him. So Scott had been able to find him then.

"I've heard of the Battle Frontier before, very powerful trainers." The elderly man informed Ash, "It's a challenge that shouldn't be accepted lightly."

"I'm aware!" Ash grinned with excitement, slamming his right fist into his left palm. "I can't wait to get started!"

Professor Oak calmly took another sip of tea, "What's the rush, young man?"

"Rush?" Ash said incredulously, "Have you gone deaf, old man? Isn't it obvious? Powerful trainers just waiting for me to beat them! I wanna get going as soon as I can!"

Professor Oak chuckled, and placed his cup of tea on the table separating the two of them. "I assure you Ash my hearing is still quite good. Like I was saying, you can't take on this challenge lightly. Take your time, and prepare. Remember, unlike when competing in the Gym Challenge, there is no time restraints. You don't need to collect these symbols to enter a major competition, you collect all seven to conquer it. You don't have to complete it within a year."

"That's true, but…" Ash muttered, not looking convinced. He really wanted to get going and take on these Frontier Brains.

"You're free to do what you wish Ash, but there are times when you need to sit back and seriously think about what you're doing." The professor lectured him, "These Frontier Brains… they're probably as strong as Drake from the Orange League."

Ash's eyes widened as he remembered the Leader of the Orange League and his powerful Dragonite. "Really that strong?" If the professor thought that knowing that would set him back, then he'd be wrong. It just made him all the more excited.

"At your level do you think you'll win?" Professor Oak questioned him, startling Ash. The elderly professor wasn't one to question his abilities, he usually encouraged him to take on the challenge and have confidence in your Pokémon.

"Of course I can!" Ash shouted, feeling insulted by the professor's lack of belief in him. "I beat Drake, didn't I? Not to mention I beat Gary in the Silver Conference!"

Professor Oak simply raised an eyebrow, "Yes, Ash, you did. I was there when you beat Gary and I watched the coverage of your match with Drake. I'm well aware of your accomplishments." He coolly stated, "But you won't be doing full six on six matches against these Frontier Brains. You'll be doing one on one or two on two, etc. And their Pokémon will be at the level of Drake's Dragonite. Apart from Charizard, and Pikachu, do you truly believe that any of your other Pokémon can take on a Pokémon at that level one on one?"

Ash scowled but he didn't answer. Looking away from the professor, he stared out of the window to see Pikachu playing with Phanpy and Totodile. When it really came down to it, the Pokémon that he counted on the most was Charizard and Pikachu, and if not them, it was Bulbasaur and Squirtle.

"Squirtle gets plenty of training with the Squirtle Squad, and Charizard trains intensely at the Charicific Valley while Bulbasaur has to deal with many different kinds of Pokémon here at the ranch." Professor Oak explained, "They're all getting stronger and Pikachu travels with you everywhere and thus gains a lot of experience. This is your chance to further your training with the rest of your Pokémon while taking on the Battle Frontier challenge."

Ash remained silent for a moment as he processed everything that the professor had told him. He couldn't deny that he made sense. He didn't have to win it within a year to compete in some sort of league, so that took some stress off. Now that he thought back to his journey through Kanto, he realised that he never really took the chance to thoroughly explore the region like he did with Johto. Maybe he could explore more areas that he never visited and catch a few more Pokémon.

"You're right, professor." Ash smiled and looked directly at the man that was a pseudo grandfather to him. "I'll wait here for Scott to get back to me and then I'll take the time to train all my Pokémon and maybe catch a few more!"

"That's the spirit!"

* * *

 **4 ½ years ago…**

* * *

For two years, Ash travelled the Kanto region training his Pokémon, exploring the land and battling the Frontier Brains. Brock had joined him early into his new journey, and the two of them had plenty of new adventures.

Over the course of the journey, Ash caught five new Pokémon. He gained a Pokémon egg that hatched into an Eevee, and he caught a wild Scyther, an Aipom and a Rhyhorn. After getting in the middle of a father and son feud, Ash gained a Hitmonlee from Master Hamm. The old karate master was going off to sell noodles and after Ash bonded with Hitmonlee, Master Hamm requested that Ash take Hitmonlee with him to battle all kinds of Pokémon. He had several chances to catch a few more Pokémon but he was more content to train the ones that he already had.

Brock had also caught a few of new Pokémon, a Machop, a Bonsly and a Sandshrew.

The Kanto Battle Frontier had sure been challenging, and Professor Oak hadn't been joking when he talked about the strength of the Frontier Brains. Noland, the Frontier Brain of the Battle Factory had an Articuno, though the Legendary Ice Bird Pokémon was a friend of his rather than his own Pokémon. It had taken Charizard everything he had to win it. It had been fortunate that despite Articuno's incredible power, it didn't seem to have much experience in battling.

Next Ash battled Greta at the Battle Arena. Ash had got Hitmonlee only a few weeks before he battled Greta but that didn't stop him from using him against Greta's Hariyama, which ended in a draw. Snorlax was then able to defeat her Medicham.

Tucker, the Frontier Brain in charge of the Battle Dome was Ash's next challenge. The man was quite famous and so thousands had flocked to see Tucker battle. It was a double match, something that Ash had little experience in but his Noctowl and Totodile was able to defeat Tucker's Swampert and Arcanine.

The Battle Pike was next, and Ash battled a powerful woman known as Lucy. His Donphan was able to knock out her Seviper but her majestic Milotic defeat Donphan in one blow. Ash was able to gain victory thanks to Pikachu's new move, Volt Tackle that dealt super effective damage to Milotic.

Ash then challenged the Battle Palace and the Frontier Brain, Spenser. Like the other Frontier Brains, the old man had proved to be a powerful trainer. Spenser's Shiftry was defeated by his Bayleef but Heracross was defeated by Spenser's Venusaur. Muk then took out Venusaur but then Spenser released his power house, Claydol. Muk fell to its power and Bayleef would have also succumbed if she hadn't evolved in the nick of time. Meganium defeated Claydol with Solarbeam which she learned upon evolving.

Ash suffered his first defeat at the hands of the Psychic type Pokémon Trainer, Anabel at the Battle Tower. Kingler, Scyther and Tauros all fell at the hands of Alakazam, Metagross and Espeon. Ash admitted after the match that he had gotten overconfident and that was the reason why he lost. In the rematch, Kingler lost in a close match with Alakazam, while Tauros and Metagross fought to a draw and Scyther defeated a worn out Alakazam and Espeon.

After getting the sixth Frontier Symbol, Ash finally learned about the Battle Pyramid. Meeting Brandon, the final Frontier Brain didn't go the way Ash wanted as he was taken over by the King of Pokélantis. Fortunately Ash was able to shake off the king's spirit thanks to Pikachu's Thunderbolt. In his first official match against Brandon, Ash elected to use his Cyndaquil – who had just learned a new fire based attack – against Brandon's formidable Registeel. Unfortunately there was a clear gap in strength between the two but momentum swung Ash's way when Cyndaquil evolved into Quilava. The Volcano Pokémon's speed increased more than anything else, and Registeel found it hard to hit the newly evolved Pokémon without using Lock-On. Despite the momentum gained through the evolution, Quilava succumbed to Registeel's mighty endurance.

The final battle between Ash and Brandon was a four on four match. Ash elected to use the Pokémon he had the longest, Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charizard, and after a hard and long grind, Ash managed to come out on top after Pikachu defeated Brandon's newly acquired Regice. Ash won more than the final Frontier Symbol, the lessons that he learned from Brandon would continue to guide him for the rest of his life.

Ash had been offered by Scott to become one of the Frontier Brains but he humbly declined the offer, wanting to travel and meet all new kinds of Pokémon. He planned to head to the Hoenn region. Ash and Brock parted ways once again, and on his way home, Ash ran into Team Rocket trying to steal a Pokémon that he had never seen before. For once he didn't have to interfere as it was immediately revealed that the Pokémon belonged to Gary and he had no trouble getting rid of the Team Rocket trio. Naturally Ash challenged Gary and his Electivire to a battle but his old rival refused, stating that Electivire needed some rest and they would battle again later.

His mother, Professor Oak, Tracey and Gary threw him a surprise party to welcome him back. After giving his mother the plaque that he received for conquering the Battle Frontier. Then he finally got to have his battle with Gary. As Pikachu and Electivire prepared to battle each other, Ash could barely contain his excitement. He wanted to see the look on Gary's face when he saw how much stronger than he was now.

The outcome was one that he never expected.

"Pikachu is unable to battle!" Tracey announced firmly, as Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum watched the battle from the sidelines. "Electivire is the winner!"

Ash could only look on in shock as his beloved Pikachu – the Pokémon that defeated the Legendary Regice – was knocked out by Gary's Electivire. He didn't even manage to land a single hit on Electivire. How could he lose to Gary after defeating the Kanto Battle Frontier?

"Pikachu, I'm so sorry." Ash apologised, cradling the electric mouse in his arms, "I really thought we could win it.

"Pika." The electric mouse gave him a reassuring grin.

"Hey Ash." Gary called out as he approached them after returning Electivire into its Poké Ball. "It's great that you won the Battle Frontier but that doesn't mean you can relax. There's a lot of tough Pokémon in Sinnoh that you don't even know about yet. Believe me, the world is a big place." Ash looked away as Gary turned to his grandfather. "I've gotta get back to Sinnoh, grandpa, so I'll be seeing ya later."

Tracey, Samuel Oak and Delia were all surprised that he was leaving so soon. "Leaving so soon?" Professor Oak asked.

"Why don't you stay a while?" Tracey offered.

"Too much stuff to do." Gary said with a happy grin, "I never seem to have enough time these days."

"Gotcha." Tracey understood.

"Well Gary it was great seeing you and I look forward to seeing a progress report soon." The professor bid his grandson farewell.

"Right." Gary nodded, "Later."

With a final look at Ash, Gary walked away.

"Tough Pokémon, huh? The world's a big place, huh?" Ash murmured quietly, but everyone else could still hear him. Delia let out a sad smile, full well knowing what Ash was about to do. That was just her Ash.

"I know just what I'm gonna do!" Ash said determinedly, getting to his feet with Pikachu still in his arms. I'm gonna head over to Sinnoh!"

"Pika?" The electric mouse looked up in surprise. That hadn't been the plan.

Tracey let out an audible, 'huh?' while Professor Oak just smiled, "I knew it. Just as night follows day."

"But Ash..!" Tracey exclaimed, "I thought you were going to Hoenn after you finished the Battle Frontier?!"

"That was the plan." Ash smirked, "But Gary is heading to Sinnoh. Pikachu and I have got to get him back for this!"

"Pika!" The electric mouse in his arms squeaked determinedly, and despite his current injuries, he was already pumped to fight again.

"Besides, we can always go to Hoenn afterwards, right Pikachu?" Ash asked the Pokémon in his arms.

"Chu." Pikachu nodded.

* * *

 **3 ½ years ago…**

* * *

Another year, and another journey had gone by for Ash as the young teen collapsed onto his bed. His companion Pikachu had jumped onto his desk and was happily munching on some Pokémon food. The journey through Sinnoh had been a terrific experience. Brock had travelled with him once again, but it seems that it would be for the last time. At the end of their journey, Brock had decided to become a Pokémon Doctor and that meant he would have to attend Pokémon Medical School.

Ash knew that Brock would become the best Pokémon Doctor possible.

Within a day after arriving in Sinnoh, Ash and Brock met Dawn, a new trainer that aspired to become the greatest Pokémon Coordinator. Ash had heard of Pokémon Coordinators over his journey but he never went out of his way to learn about them in greater detail. Dawn travelled with them all over Sinnoh and Ash thoroughly enjoyed her company. She managed to win the Wallace Cup by defeating Zoey in the final round, and successfully collected the five ribbons needed to compete in the Grand Festival. She made it all the way to the final round but fell just short of victory, losing to her friend and rival Zoey.

Dawn had expressed interest in returning to Kanto with him, but she received an invitation from Paris for her Buneary to work for a short while as a Pokémon fashion model and decided to stay in Sinnoh.

As for his own journey, he had met many new friends, including the entire Sinnoh Elite Four and the Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia. He also caught a bunch of new Pokémon, Torterra, Staraptor, Gliscor and Gible. He traded Aipom – who was more interested in Pokémon Contests than battling – to Dawn for her battle loving Buizel. Ash also gained a Chimchar after his new rival, Paul, released after conceding that he couldn't bring out Chimchar's true power. By the end of his Sinnoh journey, Ash's Chimchar had evolved all the way to an Infernape.

Speaking of his new rival Paul, the two of them didn't get along at all in the beginning due to how different their training styles were. The only thing Paul cared about was a Pokémon's strength, and any Pokémon he thought were weak, and any that didn't meet his expectations, he would release immediately. He didn't bond with his Pokémon since he believed that would spoil them and make them slackers. He was a very harsh trainer. And the complete opposite to Ash in almost every way.

Eventually Ash was able to defeat his bitter rival in a full six on six battle to advance to the final four of the Lily of the Valley Conference, and in doing so, gained Paul's respect. Despite Paul's brutal ways, something that Ash was very objected to, he couldn't deny how smart and skilled a trainer Paul was. They parted, not as friends, but respected rivals.

Unfortunately for Ash, his Sinnoh journey came to an end in the next round when he came across the powerful Tobias. Nobody in the conference had been able to defeat his Darkrai, and not even one of the Gym Leaders had been able to defeat it either. Quilava had been the first to have a crack and while he got some decent hits in, he wasn't a match for a Darkrai. Gible was the next to try, but he too succumb to the power of Darkrai. However the stadium was shocked into silence when Ash's Heracross succeeded in knocking out Darkrai.

Just when Ash thought things were about to improve he was dead wrong. The next Pokémon that Tobias released was Latios, and it defeated Heracross without breaking a sweat. Noctowl was the next Pokémon to try, but he couldn't match Latios's pure brute force. Pikachu was his last chance, and his beloved companion didn't let him down and fought Latios with everything he had. The battle between them ended in a draw. However Tobias still had four remaining Pokémon, and was declared the winner.

It was a disappointing end, Ash had to admit, but he had moved on now. He planned on resting up for a few days here in Pallet Town before heading off to the Hoenn region.

A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts, "Ash, are you in here?" He heard his mother ask.

"Yeah, c'mon in." Ash replied.

His mother entered his room with a bright smile on her face, "Have I got a surprise for you, Ash!"

"What kind of surprise?" Ash asked, sitting up with a curious look on his face.

"We're going on vacation to the Unova region with Professor Oak!" His mother declared happily.

"Seriously?" Ash asked both surprised and excited. "I don't know much about the Unova region."

"You can ask Professor Oak all you want on the way, now get packed. We're leaving in an hour!" His mother said eagerly, exiting his room. No doubt going to pack her own stuff.

"Pika-pika?" The electric mouse piped up.

"I know we're supposed to be going to the Hoenn region, but mum deserves a vacation, and she would want us to go with her." Ash explained. He knew that if he asked his mother if he could start his Hoenn journey instead of going to Unova with her she would say yes. He may not be the most tactful person, but even he knew that it would be wrong to do it. His mother could've prevented him from going on a Pokémon journey at all until he was older but she didn't. He owed her this.

"Besides, we don't even know if there are any gyms over there in Unova. If they're aren't, then we'll just head off to Hoenn when our vacation is over, right?" Ash offered the electric mouse.

"Pika!" Pikachu cheered.

"Let's go pack!"

* * *

 **2 ½ years ago…**

* * *

It was a choice between Hoenn and Kalos. That was the situation that Ash found himself in.

He had returned to Pallet Town after journeying through the Unova region and had accompanied his journalist friend Alexa here so she could interview Professor Oak. Ash had met Alexa on the way back from Unova, and was surprised to discover that she was from the Kalos region and Pikachu had befriended her Helioptile.

Now he had the difficult choice of choosing between going to Hoenn or Kalos, but he was leaning towards the Hoenn region since he had put that off several times. Currently Ash sat on his own in the back lawn of Professor Oak's Laboratory, as his Unova Pokémon all bonded with the rest of his Pokémon. Even Charizard had decided to remain here for a short time before he would eventually head back to the Charicific Valley.

His journey in the Unova region had been fun, but Ash seriously felt that he underachieved there. It felt like he had taken a back step after finishing in the top 8 in the Vertress Conference. Still he had met some good friends in Iris and Cilan, a Dragon type Pokémon Trainer and a Pokémon Connoisseur respectively. Also he had met some strong rivals in Bianca, Stephan, Trip, and Virgil and most importantly, he had gained many new Pokémon friends.

He managed to obtain an Unfezant, Snivy, Pignite, Oshawott, Scraggy, Leavanny, Palpitoad, Boldore and Krookodile. It had been the second most Pokémon he had caught in a region behind his journeys through Kanto.

"What're you up to, young man?" A familiar voice from behind ended his thoughts. Turning around he wasn't surprised to see Professor Oak. "You've been sitting there for over half an hour." The elderly professor smiled down at the talented trainer.

"Just thinking about where I'm going to travel to next." Ash replied simply, "Between Hoenn and Kalos, and I'm thinking of going to Hoenn."

"I see." Professor Oak nodded thoughtfully, "You've been meaning to go there for a few years now, haven't you?"

Ash chuckled, "That's right, but something keeps coming up that makes me choose to go somewhere else. It's kinda annoying."

Professor Oak suddenly looked sheepish, "Well, it looks like it's going to happen again."

"What'd ya mean?" Ash frowned up at him.

"I'd recommend on going to Kalos, just to meet up with Professor Sycamore. He's been studying a new revolutionary kind of evolution." Professor Oak explained, "I think it will be beneficial for you to check it out."

"A new kind of evolution..?" Ash pondered, sounding interested. Ash let out an aggravated sigh, "Now you've gotten me curious… Guess there's no helping it!" Ash beamed, jumping to his feet. "I'm heading to the Kalos region!"

* * *

 **End of Chapter**

 **If you like it, then please leave behind a review. If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

 **This isn't a great chapter, but it explains most of the stuff that happened when Ash met Scott earlier than in canon.**

* * *

 **The next chapter deals with Post-Kalos, and Ash preparing to head to the Hoenn region. You will get an idea of Ash's Pokémon, which have evolved and how strong they are compared to his canon Pokémon in the next chapter.**

* * *

 **Okay, the next chapter will be the last before the story is split into arcs. Again to remind you all, I'm going to write up an entire arc before then posting each chapter weekly. I'm hoping to get the next chapter up by Tuesday to early Wednesday. With Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection of F DVD and the Hobbit Extended Trilogy and the new Star Wars Battlefront game coming out in the coming days, my writing is going to slow a bit. So I'm going to work my butt off to get the next chapter out quickly.**

* * *

 **As for the poll, 200 people voted, and you have my gratitude and so do all those that added this story to their favourites and to all who reviewed. There were 12 votes separating third from last. However there were 20 votes separating second from third and 27 votes separating first from second.**

 **Now I'm putting up a final poll for Ash's pairing and it will be between first place (Serena) and second place (Dawn). The poll will be closed when I post the next chapter.  
**


	3. Training and Departing

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

* * *

 **Preparing for Hoenn arc – Chapter 3 – Reflecting, Planning, Training and Departing!**

* * *

 **The Previous Years…**

* * *

It was the same story for Ash… once again he had failed to win a league after getting so close. Finishing in the top four in the Kalos League left a bitter taste in his mouth, although it was better than his top eight finish in the Unova League. Still, the seventeen year old had a lot of fun in the Kalos region especially with his new friends, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie.

As he, and his best buddy, Pikachu, looked down at the small, humble Pallet Town from the top of a large hill, Ash reflected on his Kalos Journey.

Unfortunately, like he did with all of his friends, they had to split up as they all had different paths that they needed to take. Clemont and Bonnie returned to Lumiose City, with Clemont ready to become a full time Gym Leader after learning much from Ash during their time together through the Kalos region, and Bonnie had to wait patiently until she was ten for her to get her first Pokémon. Serena, on the other hand, had won enough keys to attend the Master Class Pokémon Performance and she had performed well, falling just short on beating Aria.

Serena then chose to go to the Unova region with Shauna, Tierno and Trevor to check out a few Pokémon Musicals since they were insanely popular in the Unova region. Plus Pokémon Showcases had just opened up, so she and Shauna were determined to compete. Of course, Tierno was heading to Unova to compete in the Unova League and Trevor wanted to go since Unova Pokémon could only be found in Unova with a few exceptions.

Still, his journey through Kalos climaxed when he lost to a teen boy named Calem, who was Serena's childhood friend, in the battle to make it into the final two. It had been a disappointing end, especially after the terrific comeback that Pikachu and Charizard mustered up, but in the end it fell short. It had been the first and only battle that Ash had ever had against Calem, and his inexperience against Calem was the telling difference. It reminded him of battling Paul back in the Sinnoh region, just the way Calem was able to read his battling style and counter accordingly. Perhaps if he battled Calem during his Kalos journey like he did with Paul, then things may have been different.

Four of Ash's Pokémon had been taken down by Calem's impressive battling style, and Ash only managed to defeat two of his. Staraptor had fallen to Haxorus, Snivy and Starmie fought a draw, and Gliscor also fell to Haxorus. Gible stepped in, and Ash was finally able to take down Haxorus after Gible evolved into a Gabite. However the victory was short lived, as Calem's next Pokémon, Sylveon, defeated Gabite easily. Pikachu was the one that saved him from an embarrassing defeat, defeating Calem's Sylveon and Swellow back to back, before Ash withdrew him after Calem released his Chesnaught. Charizard took down Chesnaught but then Calem released the Pokémon that Ash hadn't predicted he would use… his Tyranitar.

Calem hadn't used it for the entire tournament, and Ash had assumed that he was saving it for the final round. Ash had been expecting Calem's impressive Gallade, Alakazam, or Gengar. Worst of all, was that Tyranitar was capable of Mega-Evolving, and that had been Charizard's undoing. Charizard was his strongest Pokémon, even stronger than Pikachu, and had Tyranitar not been capable of Mega-Evolution, than Ash believed that his Charizard would've won. It wasn't to be, though. Both Charizard and Pikachu fell to Mega-Tyranitar.

He learned afterwards that while Chespin had been Calem's first Pokémon officially, he had actually raised and trained a Larvitar several years before he got his Pokémon License. Still for most, they would have viewed his performance against Calem as a good one since the trainer from Vaniville Town had only lost two Pokémon at most in his previous battle and Ash managed to take out five of them.

However, it didn't matter what they all thought, Ash wasn't satisfied with the result.

Ash clenched his right fist as he thought about that result. Charizard had been angrier than Ash had ever seen after the fight, causing him to send the fire lizard back to the Charicific Valley. Liza had informed him that her Charla was now capable of Mega-Evolving thanks to Clair discovering the required stones. Charizard is a Pokémon with enormous pride and insatiable hunger to become stronger, desiring to be the most powerful Pokémon in the world, and while Mega-Evolving was route that could help Charizard achieve the greatness he desired, Ash knew that Charizard right now would refuse it. Charizard had returned to the Charicific Valley for one reason, and one reason alone. To defeat the Mega-Evolved Charla.

Until Charizard could defeat opponents he respected that were capable of Mega-Evolving, without himself having to Mega-Evolve, Charizard would never consider that route to becoming stronger.

It had been a shame that his Greninja had been too injured in his fight the previous day. The special bond that Ash had with Greninja that allowed the ninja Pokémon to utilise a unique and one of a kind of method of Mega Evolution, one that didn't even require any Mega Stones.

Charizard hadn't been the only deeply wounded by the battle. Pikachu had been depressed about it for a couple of days. None of the electric mouse's attacks had been able to cause much damage to the powerful armoured Pokémon, and Pikachu felt responsible for costing them a place in the final two. Ash didn't realize how seriously down Pikachu was about the battle until Meowth from Team Rocket had furiously told him. The talking cat Pokémon informed him he had been observing Pikachu over the last few days, while performing his duty selling goods to the crowds that Pikachu had been considering evolving into Raichu.

Ash managed to snap Pikachu out of that train of thought, declaring that Pikachu was great the way he was, and that he couldn't forget that **he** had defeated two of Calem's Pokémon and had taken a fair amount of damage. If it wasn't for Pikachu, then he would have lost that match far earlier. Ash took complete responsibility for the defeat as he hadn't been able to adjust fast enough to Calem's battling style.

On the trip back to Pallet Town, Ash thought hard over his entire Pokémon Battling career, and he came up with some strong realizations.

All of his losses in each Pokémon League were **his** fault.

He'd always looked back on his match against Ritchie and blamed his inexperience and Team Rocket for the loss. Now though, when he looked back, he had to question the Pokémon that he used. He knew from the beginning which Pokémon Ritchie was going to use, as he had used them all in his previous matches. So he knew that Charmander was going to be used, and yet he used Squirtle against Butterfree. He could have used Muk… then he may have been able to use Squirtle on Charmander, and Bulbasaur on Pikachu.

His battle against Harrison, his mistakes also cost him. It was a common mistake that he tended to make upon reflection, and that was not substituting his Pokémon. Ash always knew that Blaziken would be the last Pokémon Harrison would use, and Harrison knew that Ash would save Charizard for last. Perhaps he could have caught him off guard and used Charizard early, using him to defeat several of his Pokémon, allowing him to use several of his own Pokémon against Blaziken. Still, he wasn't too disappointed with his performance as he had progressed further into a league, and Charizard had only **just** lost.

Sinnoh was the exception. Having to battle against a trainer with Legendary Pokémon was always to be a tough ask to win, especially since he wasn't able to use Infernape or Charizard. Infernape had been too banged up after defeat Paul's Electivire and Charizard was in similar condition after battling Paul's Torterra. Ash would always look back on that match with pride as Torterra had been an absolute beast, easily Paul's strongest Pokémon and Ash knew that none of his Pokémon, except Charizard could have defeated it.

It was his next conference when he took a step back in his development.

His performance in the Vertress Conference had been a complete and utter embarrassment. It was right up there with his performance in the Indigo League. Honestly, Ash couldn't quite work out which one was worse… Charizard not obeying him or losing to only five of Cameron's Pokémon while he used six. Ash had been able to lock his bitter thoughts about the tournament deep inside his head while he fought against Team Plasma and travelling through the Decolore Islands, but he reflected heavily on it when he got back to Pallet Town.

The answer to why he lost to Cameron was plainly obvious. Over confidence. To be honest, looking back on his Unova journey, Ash breezed through the gym challenge. He only used Pokémon he caught in the Unova region and whenever things started to look dicey, Pikachu always turned things around. He never had to have a single rematch against a Gym Leader throughout his entire Unova journey and he had gotten so damn arrogant, that he honestly believed that he could defeat the Unova League with just the Pokémon that he used in Unova.

It had been a costly mistake…

* * *

 **Pallet Town, Backyard of Professor Oak's Laboratory…**

* * *

Currently Ash was lying on his back, with his hands behind his head, in the middle of a short grass lawn. About forty feet from where he lay, all of his Pokémon were together interacting happily. Ash turned his head to observe them all for a moment.

Professor Oak was currently studying the Tyrunt that Ash had been given towards the end of his journey when he met up with Grant, and Tracey was currently in Cerulean City visiting Misty. Ash smirked for a moment, wondering if perhaps Tracey and Misty had become more than friends. The seventeen year old was no longer the dense idiot when it came to romance, after all, he was close to becoming an adult and so it was natural for him to notice girls.

It was during his travels through Sinnoh where he first really started to take an interest in girls, with a few exceptions travelling through Kanto and Johto, like Giselle for instance. Many had expressed amusement that he travelled with so many girls and had never hooked up with them but Ash had his reasons.

He was too young when travelling with Misty, plus she was more like a sister to him and he wasn't really interested in dating. His relationship with Iris was similar to the one he has with Misty. He had been too focused on his Pokémon Training, and his desire to become to a Pokémon Master to pursue a committed relationship.

Although, Ash found himself being attracted to Dawn and Serena when he travelled with them, but he never tried to pursue a romance with either of them due to his commitment on becoming a Pokémon Master.

His musings were interrupted suddenly when he noticed Quilava showing off his Flamethrower by unleashing the fierce torrent of flames into the sky. Infernape and Emboar both followed up by firing their own Flamethrowers into the sky but they were much tamer looking compared to Quilava's. However it was what happened next that really caught Ash's attention.

He sat up sharply and observed curiously as Quilava seemed to instruct them on how to improve the power of their Flamethrowers. Looking a few yards to the left, Totodile and Palpitoad were having a similar interaction with Totodile showing off his Hydro Pump and then demonstrating to Palpitoad how to make his stronger. Buizel and Dewott were both colliding into each other with their Aqua Jets, trying to determine who was stronger.

In that moment, it suddenly struck Ash just how he could make all of his Pokémon stronger.

How was he now only realizing this? Ash thought in bewilderment. By using all of his Pokémon, not only did it give him some variety, and more unpredictability but he could also have them battle each other and gain experience quicker. Ash could have screamed in frustration. If only he had thought of this earlier. He could have won a league by now!

After all, there was a quite a gap in power between his Pokémon he caught prior to Sinnoh since he had a couple of years to train them further. If he was going to win the Hoenn League, then he would need to bring the others up to their level.

Still, he looked over his Pokémon carefully, and began pondering some observations. He quickly got to his feet and he called out to his constant companion. "Hey, Pikachu!" The electric mouse currently had his back turned to Ash, and was talking animatedly with Bulbasaur.

The moment Ash called out to him, he saw Pikachu's ears perk up, and turned around to face him, "Pika, pika?" The electric mouse squeaked, confused. Surely they weren't heading back yet, he had been catching up with all the others for less than an hour.

"I'm heading home!" Ash surprised him, "There's some stuff I need to think over! You can stay here and catch up with everyone. I'll be back later!"

"Pikachu!" Ash's starting Pokémon waved goodbye cheerfully, before turning back to Bulbasaur, reengaging their conversation. Ash ignored the many confused looks from his Pokémon, all of them wondering about the slight change in Ash.

* * *

 **Pallet Town, Ash's Bedroom…**

* * *

His mother was out for the moment, most likely up at Professor Oak's, while Mr. Mime was out the front doing some gardening. Ash had his suspicions about the true nature of his mother and the professor's relationship but he had no proof of it, and he could very well just be grasping at straws.

Currently Ash sat at the desk in his room, with a sheet of paper with the names of all of his Pokémon. Next to each Pokémon, he jotted down their types, and the list of the attacks that they could use and the attacks they could learn. With a sigh, Ash looked over the list of his Pokémon's moves and thanks to the information provided in his Pokédex, he could see the moves that each one of his Pokémon could learn Paul was right, he really was an amateur with his Pokédex.

Observing the list, he took in some major factors that he was currently lacking in. One of them was the lack of moves his Pokémon had that would be strong against Pokémon with a type advantage and another clear factor was the gaps in the different kinds of Pokémon that he had obtained over the years. He had a good variety of Pokémon but the lack of Psychic, Ghost, Fairy, Ice and Steel type Pokémon was glaring.

Leaning back on his chair, Ash began to reminisce about some of the Pokémon that he probably could have captured but didn't. Pokémon like Larvitar, and the ghost trio in the Pokémon Tower within Lavender Town were ones that immediately came to mind. There was also another that crept into his mind, a Ghost and Dark Pokémon that he helped imprison after he, Dawn and Brock accidently set free. That Pokémon had been destructive, attacking villages and hurting innocent people until he and Pikachu put a stop to it just as the old Aura Guardian had done 500 years ago.

Could Spiritomb really be evil? Ash had never heard of a Pokémon being truly evil. After meeting Mewtwo at Mount Quena, he had his memories restored about the events that happened on New Island, and initially Mewtwo was the closest Pokémon that Ash had encountered that could be considered evil. However, it soon became apparent that Mewtwo had simply been hurt and used by humans, and struggled to find his purpose in this world which caused his superior powers to go to his head.

Perhaps he went about stopping Spiritomb the wrong way. He never truly tried to find out the Ghost Pokémon's reasons for attacking villages, but it was content to leave them alone and come after him. Maybe all it wanted was revenge against the Aura Guardian and his Pikachu for sealing it away for 500 years. According to the old woman that helped them seal away Spiritomb, the legend said that the Aura Guardian had stopped Spiritomb's rampage, but what if that wasn't the truth? Legends over time can completely change.

Should he risk freeing and trying to capture Spiritomb and hope that he could tame the powerful Ghost Pokémon or let it rot in the Hallowed Stone Tower? Pikachu was a lot stronger than he was back then, and it wasn't as if it was against the rules for him to use more than one Pokémon if he needed. He would ask Pikachu his opinion about it later.

Ash got up off his chair, it was time for him to use his greatest advantage. Professor Oak's Laboratory.

* * *

 **Pallet Town, Professor Oak's Laboratory…**

* * *

The sound of cursing, and the frustrated loud tapping of keyboard keys kept the elderly Professor Oak from getting some vital sleep. The professor walked slowly through the hallways of his laboratory in a white vest, blue pyjama bottoms and a black robe, rubbing his sleepy eyes. It took him several minutes to finally reach the room where the sounds were coming from and he was surprised to see Ash staring intently in front of a computer screen.

"What're you doing, young man?" Professor Oak muttered sleepily. "It's after 1 in t-the m-m-morning." He yawned, while covering his mouth politely.

"What do you know about Spiritomb?" Ash demanded, ignoring the professor's question.

"Spiritomb?" The professor blinked tiredly, "The Ghost and Dark type Pokémon from the Sinnoh region?" He tried to clarify, his sleepy mind making it hard for him to picture the Pokémon. "Not much. I've never even seen one."

"I see." Ash murmured, not taking his off the computer screen.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because I met one when I travelled through the Sinnoh region." Ash replied, taking his eyes off the screen to scribble down a note on the pad that he had sitting on the desk next to the computer.

"Ah, okay then. Keep it down will you?" Professor Oak told him, turning away intending to go back to bed for some valuable shut eye. However he froze when his mind finally perceived what Ash had just informed him. If there was one thing that could instantly wake the elderly professor up it was information about a Pokémon that he had little knowledge about.

"You've seen one?!"

Ash didn't remove his eyes from the computer screen and nodded, "Yeah, Pikachu and I were forced to seal it away."

"Please Ash!" The elderly professor pulled up a chair, and sat on it only a few metres from Ash, "Tell me everything!" He requested eagerly.

For the next ten minutes, Ash explained everything in detail about his confrontation with Spiritomb and how he was forced to seal it back into the Hallowed Tower.

"And now you're wondering if you made the right decision." Professor Oak stated, folding his arms across his chest and looked thoughtful.

Ash nodded, his eyes were finally off the computer screen as he stared at the man he considered a mentor. "Yeah, back then Spiritomb was so angry and dangerous that I just reacted and sealed it back into that tower. I didn't even try to understand it, or at the very least find out why it was attacking villages." Ash admitted feeling ashamed. "Is it possible that Spiritomb is just that, evil or could it simply be misunderstood in some way?"

"Yes, Spiritomb could just be evil." The professor answered softly, "There are some people out there in the world that are simply born messed up, and I would imagine it would be the same for some Pokémon."

"So should I leave it there? Or go back and try to catch it, and help it get rid of its anger?" Ash desperately needed to know what he should do.

Professor Oak took a deep breath and gave Ash a proud smile, "Ash, you've accomplished some incredible things ever since you started your journey when you were ten years old. You've stared down and saved Legendary Pokémon because you followed your heart without question and without doubt. Do the same here. If you do that, then you'll find your answer."

"Thanks, Professor."

As the elderly professor stood up and prepared to head back to bed – he needed a good rest at his age after all – he remembered the recent calls that had come in looking for Ash. "Sorry, young man, I completely forgot."

"Forget what?" Ash raised an eyebrow curiously.

"Over past two days there have been some calls for you that I've been meaning to inform you about." Professor Oak tapped his chin in thought for a moment, "I believe one of them was Mr. Baker from Sinnoh and a Ranger Mason from the Pokémon Preserve up on Mt. Silver."

Ash couldn't hide the surprise on his face, "Umm, really? Yeah, I'll call them both in the morning."

"Okay." Professor Oak nodded, "Good night, Ash, don't stay up too late, okay?"

Ash simply gave him a thumbs up before turning back to the computer screen. He had jotted down all of the moves that his Pokémon currently knew and he was using the valuable source known as the internet to cross check the Pokémon that he had that were capable of learning different moves from different types of Pokémon.

Such as for instance, whether it was possible for Infernape to learn the likes of Solar Beam in order to deal with Water types. His entire career as a Pokémon Trainer, Ash never cared about type disadvantages, believing that a Pokémon's determination and belief was enough to overcome any type disadvantage. However logically it would help make that belief a reality if his Pokémon had some moves that could deal strong damage to opponents that had a type advantage over them.

And so by the time he turned off the computer, and lay his head on his soft pillow, Ash resolved to teach all of his Pokémon at least one move that was strong against the elements that they were weak to. Every single one of them that were capable of doing so, except for the other 29 of his Tauros, and for those Pokémon that already had one of those moves, then he'd simply teach them a new one.

This would all have to be accomplished before he headed off to the Hoenn region.

* * *

 **Pallet Town, Backyard of Professor Oak's Laboratory…**

* * *

"Okay, so we're all here!" Ash declared with a bright grin as he looked over all of his Pokémon that he currently had here at Professor Oak's Lab. All of them, bar Charizard and 29 of his Tauros's, were all standing or sitting opposite to him right now, looking at him intently. Even Squirtle had come down after being granted a week leave from the Squirtle Squad. They were all pumped up since Ash had told them all that he had some special training for them.

"Now, I got off the phone not long ago after talking to Mr. Barker and Ranger Mason, so within two weeks, I'll be heading to Sinnoh followed by a brief trip to Johto and then finally to Hoenn! Also I know over the last few years, I've only used the Pokémon I catch in that region to take on the gyms before using all of you in the conferences, except for Unova which wasn't fair to you all. This time, I will be rotating all of you when I'm Hoenn, so you'll all get your chance to battle!"

Ash still had more to say but he never got the chance as he was engulfed in hugs by many of his Pokémon and fell to the ground laughing.

When their hugs ceased, and allowed Ash to get back to his feet, he took the chance to try and finished what he wanted to say.

"So the training that we're going to do over the next two weeks is a coordinated session where every one of you all will learn a new move." Ash paused, and waited for his Pokémon to cease cheering. When they finally settled down, he continued, "Now, Bulbasaur, can you pair with Pikachu and teach him how to use Grass Knot? That's a move that would've come in handy against Calem's Tyranitar."

"Bulba!" The seed Pokémon agreed enthusiastically.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu thanked him.

The two of them went off to an open space to begin training.

"Okay." Ash grinned, "Now Squirtle, can you teach Greninja to use Ice Beam?"

With his sunglasses firmly in place, Squirtle gave Ash a salute and Greninja went along with the turtle Pokémon.

"Staraptor… can you please take Snivy and Gliscor and teach them Aerial Ace?" Ash requested of the predator Pokémon.

The large grey and white bird Pokémon chirped in agreement and flew off with Snivy and Gliscor following.

This continued for the next few minutes as Ash assigned his Pokémon to help teach the others certain moves. Muk was asked to teach Krookodile and Palpitoad how to use Sludge Bomb and to show Scraggy how to utilise Poison Jab.

Buizel was asked to teach Totodile Aqua Jet. It may be an impossibility since for Totodile, Aqua Jet was a breeding move, and so if he didn't have the right bloodline, then he wouldn't be able to learn it. They would find the answer soon enough.

Donphan went off to teach Meganium to use Earthquake.

Infernape and Emboar paired off with Snorlax and Rhyhorn to teach them Flamethrower.

Boldore and Tyrunt began teaching Tauros, Heracross, Hawlucha, Hitmonlee, Torterra and Gabite how to wield Stone Edge.

Talonflame took on the task of teaching Unfezant, Noctowl and Leavanny to use Steel Wing.

Eevee began teach Dewott and Kingler how to utilise Dig.

The remaining Pokémon either helped out wherever they could, went off to relax until it was their turn to begin training or went off to do some personal training.

Of course Ash went around helping out wherever he could, and giving general encouragement to all of his Pokémon. Of course he had to do his own training as well, he couldn't just force his Pokémon to do all of the work. So he done multiple sets of push ups, sit ups, some weights, and a few running laps.

"I'm sure you must be enjoying this, Delia." Professor Oak said, observing Ash training all of his Pokémon from inside the lab. Delia was standing a few feet from him, looking out the same window with a bright grin on her face. "It's not often Ash decides to stick around for a couple of weeks."

Delia nodded, "Of course, unfortunately these couple of weeks will pass by quickly, so I better enjoy it while I can." She turned away from the window, and headed out the room, "I suppose I should get started on some new clothing for him."

Professor Oak simply shook his head, and continued looking out of the window. It certainly was an interesting sight, seeing Pokémon teach other Pokémon different moves.

By the end of the day, Ash had long ago discarded his shirt as his work out caused quite a sweat and he sat down to watch all of the Pokémon that had begun learning a new move to see how they progressed. Some had already learned how to use their new move, and simply needed practise on mastering it. Pikachu, Meganium, and Greninja were all in this category. Totodile was the only Pokémon that had mastered his move, but Ash wasn't surprised since it had been a water type move. Most of his Pokémon showed signs that they were close to learning the attack and some others still needed more time.

That night, Ash fell asleep outdoors with all of his Pokémon with the next day promising to be just as fulfilling. It was nice to simply hang out with his Pokémon here in Pallet Town.

Buizel and Squirtle partnered with Gabite the next day after he learned how to use Stone Edge and the Dragon type Pokémon began teaching them how to use Dig so they could avoid electric type attacks. After teaching Pikachu how to use Grass Knot, Bulbasaur then got instructions from Muk on how to use Sludge Bomb.

While all of his Pokémon were training hard, Ash took the chance to head out into the forest on Route 1 to check on Pidgeot and Pikachu went with him.

"Pidgeot!" Ash called out as he and Pikachu walked along a thin dirt road surrounded by large trees.

"Chu pika!" Pikachu shouted walking beside Ash.

The two of them had arrived at the forest where Pidgeot was for a few minutes now and still they didn't see any sign of her.

"Do you think that she is still here, Pikachu?" Ash asked his starter worriedly. He hoped that she didn't hate him since he hadn't been by here for a few years now.

Pikachu's ears perked up when he heard the sound of wings beating in the air and he spun around and with extreme excitement, he began pointing to the sky, "Pikachu pi pika!"

Ash spun around and, to his delight, he saw a familiar large bird Pokémon flying eagerly towards him. He heard her chirp happily and she landed gracefully only a few feet from them.

"You're looking stronger than ever, Pidgeot." Ash praised her and he softly petted the side of her neck. For such a tough looking Pokémon, it amazed Ash that her feathers were so soft. Pidgeot responded by biting Ash softly with her beak. Pikachu jumped excitedly onto her back, "Pika-pika!"

Pidgeot chirped in reply and Pikachu laughed and not for the first time did Ash wonder what his Pokémon talk about.

A loud amount of chirping suddenly entered Ash's ears and he looked up to see a large flock of Pidgey, Pidgeotto and to Ash surprise, a couple of Pidgeots.

"Do you want to come with me, Pidgeot?" Ash asked her hopefully and he held out her old Poké Ball, "Or do you want to stay with your flock?"

Pidgeot gave him a sorrowful look before signalling to one of the Pidgeot's to come down and it landed gracefully next to her. Ash's old Pidgeot nuzzled into the side of its neck giving Ash a clear answer.

"I see." Ash smiled sadly, but he truly was happy for his old friend, "This must be your mate. I understand." He patted her beak softly, "You better look after yourself, ya hear?"

Pidgeot chirped happily, which Ash took that to be a yes, and with sadness in his eyes, he watched as his beloved Pidgeot fly off with her mate and the rest of her pack. She was a part of his family, now and forever but she had her own family now. He wouldn't officially release her though and he knew that she didn't want him to. As long as she was technically still his, she couldn't be captured by another trainer that wanted to split up her from her family.

"That makes five, doesn't it, Pikachu?" Ash murmured.

"Chu." Pikachu nodded sadly as the flock began to grow smaller the further they got. Within seconds, they were no longer in sight.

Butterfree, Lapras, Goodra and now Pidgeot were all Pokémon that he had released throughout his journey. Squirtle, Charizard and Primeape were sent away for training, along with Gliscor but she was back now, permanently. However he kept in contact with Anthony over the years, enjoying hearing about Primeape's impressive achievements, and within a year of training with Anthony, he became a P1 Champion. It soon became clear that Primeape didn't want to come back and so Ash officially released him into Anthony's care.

"Time to get back and check on everyone's progress." Ash sighed, before grinning down at Pikachu, "Race ya there!"

"Pika!" The electric mouse cheered chasing after Ash.

The result was obvious… poor Ash never had a chance.

* * *

 **Pallet Town, Ketchum Residence…**

* * *

"I guess this is goodbye for a while, then." Ash grinned, looking down slightly at his mother and the professor with Pikachu on his shoulder and he wore the clothes that his mother made for him proudly.

The three of them stood just outside the front door to Ash's house, with the sun still rising in the background. It was certainly kind of Professor Oak to come down so early in the morning to say goodbye to him.

Delia let out a sad smile, before pulling him in to a tight hug, "Now be careful out there Ash, and keep in touch every week."

Ash chuckled lightly, giving his mother a reassuring squeeze, "Don't worry, I will."

"Remember to follow your heart, Ash." The professor advised, grasping Ash's right shoulder and gave it a confident squeeze. "It's never led you astray and it never will. I'm looking forward to all of the Pokémon that you'll catch in Hoenn, just try and make sure that none of them are energetic enough to ruin my lab when you send them." Professor Oak requested, before looking away and muttering, "Unlike a few that you've sent me in the past."

"I'll keep that in mind." Ash chuckled sheepishly.

"Look after him, okay, Pikachu." Delia said to Pikachu as she gave him a soft pat under his chin causing the electric mouse to sigh in contentment. "Pikachu!" He promised her.

"I'll see you all later!" Ash shouted, running off down the dirt road towards Route 1, with Pikachu clinging to his shoulder.

"I knew those two weeks would pass by quickly." Delia sighed, as she watched with sadness but also joy as Ash moved beyond her view. It broke her heart every time Ash left her, but she also knew that he was out trying to achieve his dream, and she would always encourage him to go for it. "I wonder how tall he'll be when I next see him. When he left for Kalos, I was still taller than him but when he came back…" She broke off, as tears began to form in her eyes and she found it hard to continue. It was certainly a shock for her to see that her son had become taller than her.

Professor Oak placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Its hard watching your children grow up, and even harder when you don't get to see most of it, but you should be very proud of your son. You did an exceptional job raising him."

Delia wiped away her tears and gave him a thankful smile, "Thank you, Samuel."

* * *

 **Route 1…**

* * *

As Ash walked down the dirt road leading towards Viridian City, with Pikachu walking by his side, he thought about the task that was before him.

"Are you sure you want to do this Pikachu?" Ash glanced down at the electric mouse. "We don't have to do it."

"Pikachu!" The electric rodent shook his head, "Pika pi pika!" He said firmly, his red cheeks crackling with electricity demonstrating how eager he was.

Ash grinned, and clenched his right fist tightly, "You're right! We're a lot stronger than before! We can do this!"

"Pika!" Pikachu mimicked his action, pumping his own tiny fist.

"Besides, we've got Totodile, Quilava, and Heracross with us, so it should be a piece of cake!" Ash declared. He kept two slots open for two new acquisitions he intended to get in the Sinnoh region. Their excitement was interrupted when they heard a loud giggle echo through the forest they were in. Pikachu's ears perked up and his eyes shone with glee as he recognised the feminine giggles. He rushed ahead with Ash immediately chasing after him, before he came to a stop only a few feet away from the largest and thickest tree in the forest. When Ash reached Pikachu's position, his eyes widened at what he saw.

Though he had thought of the possibility, he didn't **actually** expect it to happen.

What he saw was Misty in an intense lip lock with Tracey, and it was clear that Misty was the one in control considering she was the one pushing him up against the tree.

Tracey looked the same as ever, except that he was slightly taller than Ash. Misty, on the other hand, had changed a lot over the past couple years. She had moved past her awkward teenage stage and had blossomed into a beautiful young woman, and Ash had to admit that he preferred her long orange hair that fell down below her shoulders over her previous short haired look. Currently she wore a yellow sleeveless top matching shorts while Tracey wore his usual loose green t-shirt, reddish-brown shorts.

Suddenly Ash saw that Tracey's hands were heading towards Misty's shapely rear and he decided that he needed to put a stop to this before he saw something he **really** didn't want to.

Ash let out an uncomfortable cough at the sight which immediately made them break apart, and Ash grinned when he saw their faces turn completely red in embarrassment when they released who had interrupted them.

"Sorry to interrupt, but… huh?" Ash suddenly murmured, "I don't really know why I did, ha-ha." He chuckled sheepishly.

Suddenly Ash was sure that Misty's red face from embarrassment immediately turned into a red face of anger, but thankfully, Pikachu was able to prevent her blow up.

"Pikachupi!" Pikachu cried leaping into her startled arms.

"H-Hey Ash." Tracey greeted his old friend nervously, fixing his green shirt that had been slightly out of position. It was understandable why he was nervous, he thought to himself. He wasn't sure how Ash felt about Misty, and he had heard talk around Pallet Town how the two of them would eventually get together. He knew how Misty truly felt about Ash, she had explained it to him before they began dating, but that didn't mean that Ash would be fine with it. He hoped that he wouldn't lose his friendship over Ash, but he knew that he couldn't break up with Misty.

"Hey Trace!" Ash greeted him cheerfully, "How ya been?"

Tracey began to relax, it certainly didn't seem like Ash was upset. "Things have been good. It had been quite busy at the lab the last few months so getting a few weeks off was really great."

"What about you, Mist?" Ash inquired, "How's the Cerulean Gym? Haven't made it close down, have you?"

Misty scowled at him, her red face now back to her usual colour. "Of course not." Misty rolled her eyes, "In fact, it's one of the toughest gyms in Kanto!" She boasted proudly.

"I can vouch for that!" Tracey beamed, looking at his girlfriend with loving pride, "When her sisters ran the gym, it was ranked last in overall strength in Kanto, and now it is right up there with the Saffron and Viridian Gyms."

Ash whistled, "I'm impressed." He truly meant that. Ash couldn't deny that he was curious to check it out and see how strong Misty had become over the years. From what he remembered, because her sisters lack of interest in Pokémon Battling, the Cerulean Gym had been close to closing down until Misty went back.

Misty grinned as Pikachu jumped out of her arms into Tracey to give him a hug, and the orange haired girl walked over to Ash. "It's good to see you again, Ash." Misty said, and gave him a short hug.

"You too, Mist." Ash grinned, "Now onto important matters, how long has this been going on?"

Misty blushed, "A couple of months." She admitted, rubbing the back of her head bashfully.

"I'm happy for you both." Ash smiled, and Tracey let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Now Tracey… Misty is the closest thing I have to a sister." Ash informed the professor's aid sternly. "So I know her quite well, and listen, there's, uh, something I want to tell you about her."

Misty raised an eyebrow, but didn't interrupt. She was quite touched that he thought of her as a sister.

Tracey had a feeling he already knew what Ash was going to say, and he quickly interrupted before Ash had the chance to say it. "I know. I know. You'll kill me if I ever hurt her."

Ash shook his head with slight grin, "Oh no, no." Ash assured him, "No… She'll kill you."

Tracey glanced over at Misty and she smirked causing him to pale lightly. Ash quickly patted his shoulder, "Good luck."

Tracey shook his head, banishing the thought of Misty killing him. He had no intentions of hurting her. "So where you headed now?"

"I gotta go to Sinnoh for a bit, then Johto before heading to Hoenn." Ash answered with a bright grin.

"Jeez Ash." Misty grumbled with a grin, "You can't help but put Hoenn off, can you?"

"I know, but I wouldn't be going to Sinnoh and Johto if it wasn't important." Ash chuckled.

"You should hurry Ash." Tracey informed him, "Hoenn is a really beautiful place, and there are some really interesting kinds of Pokémon."

"And it has the **best** beaches!" Misty declared happily.

"You've been there, then?" Ash raised an eyebrow curiously. "When did you go?"

"Couple of years ago. You don't think that I stay at Cerulean City every day of every year, do ya?" Misty answered brightly, "Even Gym Leaders get some vacation time during the year, and whenever I do, I travel to other regions to capture some new Water type Pokémon! And Tracey here recommended the Hoenn region because it had a lot of Water Pokémon for me to catch!"

"And…" Ash waited for a moment but Misty didn't go on. "What Pokémon have you caught over the years? Have you even been able to catch any?" Ash finished with a teasing smirk.

"Of course I have! I've caught a lot actually over the past five years! In fact I've caught eighteen – soon to be nineteen – Pokémon since I became a Gym Leader!" Misty retorted indignantly, impressing Ash. "In Hoenn, I caught a Mudkip that has evolved into a Swampert, and I also caught a Spheal that's now a Walrein, a Sharpedo and a Pelipper. Not to mention, my Togepi evolved into a Togetic, my Goldeen is now a Seaking and Horsea has become a Seadra!"

"Been to Sinnoh, Unova and Kalos, I presume." Ash said, raising an eyebrow curiously.

"Yep!" Misty beamed, giving him a wink, "I caught and received several Pokémon from each of those regions. In Sinnoh I caught a Bibarel and Gastrodon, while Professor Oak put in a good word for me to Professor Rowan and I was given a Piplup. It's evolved into a Prinplup now. When I was in Unova, I received an Oshawott from Professor Juniper that's now a Samurott, and I also caught a Panpour, Carracosta and a Swanna."

"The Azurill that hatched from an egg that I gave her has become an Azumarill." Tracey piped up, and Ash remembered the little cute Pokémon that Misty had shown him when he visited Cerulean during his journey to compete against the Battle Frontier.

"When I visited Kalos, I was able to catch a Slowbro and a Lanturn. Also Professor Sycamore gave me an egg that will hatch into a Froakie." Misty grinned, "And Professor Elm gave me a Totodile when I visited him two years ago, and it just evolved into a Feraligatr a couple of days ago."

"Wow, I'm surprised that all these Professors are giving you starter Pokémon…" Ash mused, "How'd ya convince them to do that?"

Misty looked sheepish, "Actually I've got you and Professor Oak to thank for that." She informed him, "You've made quite a lasting impression on them, and they were happy to help me out since the professor vouched for me and also told them all that we're best friends."

"You're welcome." Ash grinned.

"Speaking of Professor Oak, he also gave Misty a Squirtle." Tracey grinned, with his hands in pockets.

"I owe that one to you." Misty grinned at him lovingly, planting a soft kiss on his cheek.

It was hard to for Ash's brain to comprehend that this was the same Misty that he travelled with. Who knew that someone with such a rash temper could be so sweet?

"Squirtle is now a Blastoise, and over the years while fishing here in Kanto, I've managed to catch a Krabby that is now a Kingler, and miraculously, I was even able to find a wild Vaporeon."

"Seriously?" Ash raised an eyebrow, "Where did you find that? Finding a Vaporeon in the wild is really rare, Mist."

Misty nodded, "Yeah, after catching her, I soon learned that it had been abused and released from her previous trainer. It took a long time to gain her trust, but it was worth it. She's so adorable!" The red head squealed, "And of course that leaves one final Pokémon that I caught recently. I've finally got my hands on a beautiful Tentacruel!"

Ash shook his head, and with a side glance to Tracey, and judging by the look on his face, Ash deduced that even her boyfriend didn't share her enthusiasm for Tentacruel's appearance.

"Still, I can't believe how many of your Pokémon you've been able to evolve over the years." Ash mused thoughtfully, "How'd you do it?"

"Is it really that surprising?" Misty retorted with a grin, "I always rotate my Pokémon each time a trainer comes to challenge the gym. Plus since all of my Pokémon are held at the Cerulean Gym, I have access to them all every day. I don't just sit around, or swim around while waiting for trainers, you know. We do a lot of training!"

"Really? Wow, I'm actually impressed." Ash smirked at her. "Never thought I'd be saying that to you."

Misty puffed her cheeks angrily and pulled out a Poké Ball, "How 'bout a battle?! I've always enjoyed wiping the smirk off your face!"

Ash's smirk widened, and he reached for Quilava's Poké Ball. He'd love to see Misty's face when she beat one of her beloved Water Pokémon with a fire type.

"Pikachu pi pika!" The electric mouse interrupted, tapping his wrist with his paw, signalling to Ash to be careful about the time.

"That's right!" Ash's eyes snapped down to his wrist to look at the time, "At this rate I'm gonna be late!" He looked over at Misty and Tracey, giving them an apologetic smile, "Sorry guys, gotta hurry and catch my boat! We'll continue this next time!"

With that, Ash bolted down the road with his partner Pikachu running alongside him leaving behind a chuckling Tracey, and an annoyed Misty.

"Bah!" Misty scoffed irritably, pocketing her Poké Ball. "He ran because knew he was going to lose."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's why." Tracey chuckled.

Misty just gave her a boyfriend a death glare and Tracey suddenly regretted his sarcastic remark. Ash was right, he was going to have to be careful if he wanted to survive this relationship.

"Sorry." Tracey muttered.

Misty rolled her eyes, of course Ash would have to remind Tracey about her temper. He should really know better by now. Ash didn't know that she had chilled out a lot in the past few years. Growing up she had been constantly in her older sisters shadows and they flaunted it, making her become quite an angry girl. However now she was completely recognised as the Fourth Sensational Sister, by both her older sisters, and the public. Most of her temper issues were now fully in control.

Time to remind Tracey about who she was now and not who she used to be.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't kill you." Misty grinned assuredly at him, grabbing her his hand bringing it to her bum. "Now where were we?"

Tracey grinned widely and kissed her passionately. He truly didn't have to worry, as he would never hurt her, no matter what.

* * *

 **End of Chapter**

 **If you like it then please leave a review. If you don't like it, then don't read it.**

* * *

 **A few things, I didn't go into too much detail about Ash's training since I find it kind of boring to read, and it's boring to write. I much prefer to simply show the improvement when Ash uses them in actual battles.**

* * *

 **Before I get flamed for all of the Pokémon Misty now has, and how many have evolved, let me explain. First of all, Misty's six strongest Pokémon vs Ash's six strongest = Ash wins easily. Ash's strongest Pokémon are way above Misty's. Also Gary in his first year, caught over 200 Pokémon, and I've had Misty catch 18 or so in like 5/6 years, so it's not that big of a deal.**

 **In the anime, from when Misty left the anime, Ash has caught 20 or so Pokémon, so even canon Ash has caught more than her.**

* * *

 **Also I've also hinted at the possibility of a Delia x Samuel pairing, but it's only Ash's suspicions. I have no plans to write about the pairing, and neither will I confirm on whether they're together or not. That's all entirely up to you.**


	4. Reunion in Sinnoh!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

* * *

 **Training and Preparation arc – Chapter 4 – Reunion in Sinnoh!**

* * *

 **Sandgem Town, Sinnoh region…**

* * *

Dawn Berlitz is a 16 ½ year old, beautiful blue haired Pokémon Coordinator and runner up in the Sinnoh Grand Festival in her first year of her Pokémon journey, losing to her friendly rival Zoey in a tight contest. She was also the winner of the last Wallace Cup in Sinnoh, followed by finishing in the top 2 of the Wallace Cup that was held in Johto. Initially she planned on travelling to the Hoenn region to compete in more Pokémon Contests since Hoenn was the region that the Pokémon Contest originated in. Not to mention, the Contest Master Wallace was from Hoenn.

However in the end, she had chosen to compete in Kanto instead. She didn't really have any particular reason for her change of heart, but the ferries that went to the Hoenn region were unavailable for a couple of days. Granted, she could have went to another town's docks but she just decided to board a boat to the Kanto region. Of course, she immediately informed her mother and Professor Rowan of her newly changed plans. She had wanted to go to Kanto with Ash in the first place, plus she would get the chance to visit Ash's hometown.

It was a decision that she didn't regret.

Back before she had left for Kanto, she had been psyched to get back into Pokémon Contests after Buneary's stint as a Pokémon Fashion Model. While she and Buneary enjoyed the experience, and it was a good option for them to continue in the future when her time as a Pokémon Coordinator was up, but for now, Pokémon Contests were her passion.

However Dawn couldn't deny that she had been bored at times while doing the job of a Pokémon Stylist. It was a pretty demanding job with little chance to go out and have fun and she didn't have anyone really that close to talk to. Sure, Hermione and Paris were always good to talk to but she never really found any common ground with the other Pokémon Stylists. In fact, most of them look down on her since she was so young compared to them.

When she went to Kanto, she caught a few new Pokémon, and successfully gathered the required five ribbons to qualify for the Grand Festival. She didn't win it, unfortunately, but she came close, finishing in the top 4 after losing to Nando by a couple of points. Dawn had chosen to use an unfinished combination between Piplup and Quilava, but it ended up backfiring, allowing Nando to claim victory. Dawn didn't regret trying the combination, she was behind and time was almost up. If it had worked, then she would have won for sure. All she could do was to continue practising and believing in her Pokémon until they mastered it.

It had been a rather smooth sailing journey for her since she wasn't being constantly attacked by the Team Rocket trio but she had to deal with one factor that she hadn't counted on. Loneliness. Travelling in between towns had been by herself had been tough, especially since Piplup would just go back into his Poké Ball whenever he got bored. It certainly made her appreciate her journey through Sinnoh with Ash and Brock much more.

In an attempt to shake things up she took the chance to catch a plane to take her to Unova so she could check out a Pokémon Musical and to see one of Elesa's fashion shows. As a Pokémon Coordinator, she wanted to get as much inspiration as she could and they were two events that greatly helped. Once she heard that Cynthia was going to make an appearance at the Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup being held in Lacunosa Town, she couldn't resist competing.

A few weeks into her Kanto journey, she had contacted both Ash and Brock, curious to see what they were up to. Brock was doing exceptionally well in his Pokémon Doctor course. Thanks to all the knowledge that he had gained from years of journeying had been a real asset as he was pushed up to third year material in only his second year. All Dawn hoped was that there wouldn't be a bunch of Brocks running the Pokémon Centres in thirty years… no girl would be able to find any peace.

As for Ash, she learned that he had decided to take on the Unova League, which surprised her, because she thought he intended to go to Hoenn after he finished in Sinnoh. Either way, she was confident that he could go all the way. When she got in contact with Cynthia, telling her that she was competing in the Junior Cup, there was always the possibility of running into Ash. So when she heard from Cynthia that she had run into Ash and was bring back to the place they were staying at, she wasn't surprised. She also got the chance to meet his travelling companions, Iris and Cilan, who she befriended quickly.

Seeing Ash again had been amazing, she had forgotten how inspiring he could be. His drive and his determination to be the best along with his desire to help those he cares about really made him a special guy. She also noticed how handsome he had become since she had last seen him. For a few days before she headed to Unova, she had really been feeling down, being alone on her journey, but being with Ash again reignited the fire in her belly.

Leaving Unova to go to Johto so she could compete in the Wallace Cup, Dawn felt more confident than ever before and never again did she allow her loneliness get the best of her. After all, there would always be the chance that she met someone just like Ash. Well, not exactly the same. There wasn't anyone else like Ash... Her friend from Pallet Town was special.

One – and probably the only one – of the positives of not travelling with Ash was that she didn't have to worry about Team Rocket showing up to steal her Pokémon.

They were mainly after Pikachu, after all.

Johto was the next region that she competed in. After travelling to Johto to compete in the Wallace Cup, she had loved the experience. So naturally she couldn't resist the chance to explore the rest of the region and participate in more contests. Unfortunately she could only make it to the top 8, with her Pokémon being knocked out against her oldest friend, Kenny. Her Mamoswine and Misdreavus – who she caught in Johto – and been defeated by Kenny's Ninetails and Alakazam.

It had been an ordinary performance, one that she just couldn't get into sync and her Pokémon suffered because of it. She vowed to use those two Pokémon in her next contest double battle and the outcome would be very different.

Now she was preparing for her next journey after returning home for a few weeks. She was thrilled and excited for the chance to travel through Hoenn and compete in more contests. Plus she was giddy at the prospect of running into Ash. She had called his house only a few days ago but there was no answer so she tried Professor Oak's lab. Tracey, his assistant was the one that answered and he informed her that Ash was heading to Hoenn. She hoped that they would run into each other, and maybe travel together again.

Currently she was at the docks in Sandgem Town preparing to take a ferry to the Hoenn region. This was one of the smaller docks in the Sinnoh region, with only two ports for ferries to pull in. Separating them was a large cement floor filled with a single row of benches on each port; each bench was separated by a tree or plant. Of course, there was a long and wide building where the tickets were bought.

The Pokémon Coordinator wore brand new clothes for the start of her new journey. Instead of a white beanie, she wore a black one with a red contest ribbon logo printed on the front. Her hair remained the same, with the gold clips to keep the front of her hair up, and the back fell down to the middle of her back. The pink scarf that she wore around her neck during her Sinnoh journey was replaced with a red one. She wore a similar mini dress, sleeveless and down to her thighs, but the colour scheme was slightly different. The bottom of the dress had a red flame shaped design and she wore a light blue undershirt that could be seen through the v-shaped collar. She also wore black knee-high boots with red socks underneath, and she kept the same yellow backpack that she used journeying through Sinnoh.

Standing a few feet away from her was a light-blue penguin-like Pokémon named Piplup, and he was Dawn's starting Pokémon and number one companion. The penguin Pokémon was often out of his Poké Ball, preferring to be out to keep his trainer company.

"Almost time, Piplup!" The 16 ½ year old girl smiled down at her beloved Pokémon. "Ready for a whole new adventure?"

"Pip... Piplup!" The Penguin Pokémon crossed his fins over his chest, a determined look marring his face. He wasn't going to let her down! He was going to defeat any and every Pokémon that stood in Dawn's way of becoming Top Coordinator!

"With you, and the rest of my Pokémon, there's no way we can fail!" Dawn declared, fire flaring in her eyes. "I'll be top coordinator, no need to worry!"

"Piplup!" The Penguin Pokémon agreed, nodding his head smugly.

Dawn reached into her bag to get out her ticket for the ferry. "Found it!" She exclaimed happily, pulling out the important ticket. However when she showed it to Piplup, the Penguin Pokémon wasn't interested in it. Instead, he was looking off in the direction where passengers were exiting off another ferry. What caught Dawn's attention though was how wide his eyes were. He had a look of pure shock marring his face.

Deciding to try and find out just what had shocked Piplup so much, Dawn looked over in the same direction. It was only about midday, and the sun was shining high in the sky, without a single cloud in the sky, making it hard to see. Dawn was forced to raise her hands over her eyes to block out the sunlight and after a few moments of searching, she finally discovered what had shocked Piplup.

A very familiar handsome young man with spiky black hair had just reach the bottom of the ramp that was used to get passengers off the ferry, with a Pikachu on his shoulder.

"It couldn't be..." Dawn muttered in denial, "Why would he be here?"

"Pip?"

The clothing that he wore was different, but still similar to the ones that he wore when he travelled with her in Sinnoh. He had a new hat, and he wore a hoodie instead of a jacket. He wore the same black fingerless gloves with the green border that he wore in Sinnoh, and new lighter blue jeans and blue and black sneakers.

He stood out of the way of the ramp, and pulled out a PokéNav. Suddenly, as if it was fate, the teen looked up, his brown eyes meeting her blue. His eyes widened slightly, before a bright grin formed on his face.

Dawn felt a grin instinctively grow on her face, and she, along with Piplup, hurried over to their friends. When she was only a few feet away, Ash raised his hand above his head, and Dawn immediately copied his movements, and clapped his hand firmly. Then she followed up by hugging tightly, taking the chance to appreciate his newly formed muscles. He had been working out it seemed.

"Nice to see you too, Dawn." Ash grinned, hugging to him tightly. With a light blush, he wondered for a moment if her breasts pressing tightly against his chest had grown a bit.

Dawn broke the hug with a bright grin on her face, "Ash! Pikachu! It's great to see you too! What're you doing here?!"

"Pip, pip Piplup!" The penguin Pokémon greeted them happily from his position on the floor, dancing excitedly at the sight of them. Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder down onto the cement floor, and greeted Piplup with a hug.

Of course there wasn't one Pokémon that couldn't stay in her Poké Ball with Pikachu on the scene. Buneary popped out onto the floor, threw a startled Piplup off the electric mouse, and grabbed Pikachu in her own hug. Ash's starting Pokémon didn't get the chance to reciprocate, because in a flash, he was released from her hold and she returned to her to her ball, flustered.

With a slight tilt of his head to the left, the electric mouse let out a confused, 'Pika-pika?'

"Just have to do some things before I head to Johto." Ash informed her, amused by Buneary's actions but his answer just made her even more confused.

"Johto? Tracey said that you were going to Hoenn." Dawn puffed out her cheeks angrily, and she bent forward slightly, hands on hips with an irritated look on her usual pretty face. "What are you up to, mister?!" Dawn almost pouted, she had just _been_ to Johto!

Ash rubbed the back of his head, releasing a light chuckle. "I've got a similar task to do in Johto as I do here. Once I'm done there, then I'm heading to Hoenn, finally."

"And...?" Dawn drawled with a raised eyebrow, her foot tapping the ground impatiently, waiting for Ash to continue.

"And what?" Ash frowned, puzzled.

"What _tasks_ do you have to do?!" Dawn demanded.

"Oh that... ummm... it's not really important." Ash said, trying to be subtly evasive, and failing miserably. He knew without a doubt that Dawn wouldn't be too pleased with what he had planned. "Enough about me, what 'bout you?" Ash asked her curiously, as a powerful horn blew loudly, causing them to flinch. "Where you headed to?"

Dawn shook her head, "Just about to head off to Hoenn to compete in more contests." She declared proudly. Crouching down, Dawn happily caressed Pikachu's chin softly. "It's great to see you again, Pikachu."

"Chu..." The electric mouse enjoyed the soft hands stroking his fur.

"Um, Dawn?" The blue haired coordinator looked back up at Ash to see him pointing behind her. "Is that your ferry?"

Dawn turned back, and her eyes widened in horror. Standing sharply to her feet, Dawn could only watch, horrified, as her ferry began departing from the dock.

" _No!_ " Dawn shouted, clutching her hair tightly, with crocodile tears running down her face. She fell to her knees. "All of that money for the ticket... wasted." She cried in misery. Piplup sweat dropped at the sight of his trainer falling apart.

Ash folded his arms across his chest with a nod. "Yeah, I know the feeling." He chuckled lightly, remembering the times where he had missed a boat. It had happened more times than he'd care admit.

Dawn jumped back to her feet, all traces of misery gone from her face, and quickly fixed her hair with a brush that she seemed to pull out of thin air. "I guess that settles it." In fact, she looked excited.

"Settles what?" Ash inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Dawn mimicked Ash's action, folding her arms across her chests, unintentionally enhancing them, looking smug. Ash noticed this and quickly looked away, with a light blush on his cheeks.

"I'm going with you!" Dawn decided. "Since we're both heading to Hoenn anyway, I may as well go with you!"

"Piplup!" The penguin Pokémon chirped in delight.

"Really?" Ash blinked, startled by the announcement, but he was more than happy to travel together through Hoenn.

"Don't you want me to spend some time with me?" Dawn pouted sadly.

"Of course!" Ash immediately responded, "It's just... isn't going with me going to get in the way of your contests? I won't be getting to Hoenn for a couple of weeks, that's a couple of contests you could possibly miss. Wouldn't it be better to simply meet up in Hoenn?"

Dawn shrugged the matter off, "I've already had a major setback by _missing my boat_." She hissed the last part through her teeth. "Besides, travelling with you will make us stronger, right Piplup?"

"Piplup!"

Ash grinned, "Good point," Suddenly the grin turned to a frown, "Just so you know, what I'm doing here is kinda dangerous."

"Dangerous, huh?" Dawn said slyly, raising her right eyebrow. "More dangerous than what happened in Alamos Town, or the incident with Giratina. Going into the past to deal with Arceus was _extremely safe_... that kind of danger?"

Ash stroked his chin as he thought about it. "No, it's not _that_ dangerous. However what I'm going to do is risky and I don't want you to get hurt."

"That's sweet, Ash." Dawn smiled gratefully at him, and because Ash looked away at the compliment, he missed the slight blush on her face. "No need to worry. I trust you, plus we've gotten a lot stronger over the last couple of years! Also I want to hear all about your Kalos journey!"

"Lup, Piplup!" Piplup agreed with his trainer's confidence.

Ash didn't hesitate, and immediately grabbed her hand, and began dragging her towards the dock exit. "Let's get going then!"

"Pika!" The electric mouse had predicted his trainer's movements, and had jumped up back onto his shoulder before he grabbed Dawn's hand.

"Where are we going?" Dawn demanded, surprised at Ash's actions, but she didn't resist.

"Towards Veilstone City!" Ash answered excitedly, racing down the path out of the Sandgem Docks, dragging Dawn along with him. Poor Piplup was left trailing them.

* * *

"Are you going to tell me yet why we're going to Veilstone?" Dawn questioned Ash a few minutes later. Ash had finally released her hand once they got out of Sandgem Town however he remained evasive on what he was after. Right now, they were walking along a dirt road along route 202 towards Jubilife City.

"Nope." Ash grinned over at her. Dawn would just try and convince him out of it if he did.

Dawn let out an aggravated sigh, "You're acting like kid, it's really unattractive, you know."

Ash simply shrugged, and Pikachu sniggered.

"If you wanted to go to Veilstone, why didn't you get on a ship that gets off at a town close to it?" Dawn inquired.

"That was my intention… Unfortunately I missed the boat thanks to Team Rocket and I was forced to catch a different one." Ash grumbled angrily. Pikachu's cheeks sparkled furiously, remembering another attempt by the trio of bozos trying to take him from Ash.

"Won't they ever learn?" Dawn scowled.

"I've been wondering that for seven years." The seventeen year old retorted. "I wouldn't hold my breath. Unfortunately for you, since you're travelling with me again, you're going to have to deal with them to."

"Lucky me." Dawn groaned, causing Ash to chuckle, but she quickly perked up. "So tell me about your Kalos journey! Did you travel with anyone else? What did –."

"Hey, you!"

Dawn was interrupted by a familiar looking teenage boy wearing dark red shirt with a dark blue and black jacket over it, a white scarf wrapped around his neck. He also wore denim black pants with dark grey and white running shoes, and a dark red hat with a white and black semi Poké Ball on the back. Ash's eyes were immediately drawn to his black glove that held a Key Stone. He was roughly Ash's height, standing roughly at 5'10", both of them dwarfing the 5'2", Dawn, and it was hard to see with his hat on, but Dawn thought that it looked like he had slate grey hair. Could this be..?

The boy approached them from further down the road, heading straight towards them. "I knew I recognised you." He said, stopping a few feet from Ash, a small grin marring his face. Now that he was up close, Dawn was positive. "You're Ash Ketchum."

"You know me?" Ash blinked, surprised.

The boy chuckled, "Of course I do. I watched you battle Paul and Tobias in the Lily of the Valley Conference. Nobody is going to forget those two matches for a long time." The boy's eyes focused onto Pikachu, who was looking at him with the same curious expression that was on Ash's face. "This must be _the_ Pikachu!" The boy exclaimed in awe, "The same Pokémon that _tied_ with a _Latios_!"

"Pika!" The electric mouse puffed out his chest proudly.

"You're Lucas!" Dawn interrupted firmly, staring at the boy with wide eyes.

"That's right." Lucas looked over at her closely for a moment, before realisation flashed in his eyes. "You... you're..." He chuckled lightly, "You're Dee-Dee."

Dawn puffed her cheeks, slightly annoyed by the infamous nickname. "It's Dawn." She growled, half-heartedly.

"You know this guy, Dawn?" Ash asked her, eyeing the boy in front of him. He looked familiar... along with his name.

Dawn nodded, "Yeah, his name's Lucas. He grew up with me and Kenny. Unlike Kenny and me, he was allowed to get his Pokémon when he was ten, but our mums wanted us to wait until we were older."

Ash folded his arms, and looked away for a moment, muttering, "Lucas... of Twinleaf Town..." He had heard that name recently.

"Is Piplup the Pokémon you started with Dawn?" Lucas asked his old friend curiously.

"Pip!" The penguin Pokémon puffed out his chest.

Dawn giggled lightly, "That's right." Immediately she frowned when she tried to recall the Pokémon that he started with. "Which one did you choose again?"

"I chose Chimchar, who has long since evolved into an Infernape and is one of my strongest Pokémon." Lucas answered with a grin. "Though, I don't have him with me at the moment, he's off doing some special training."

Dawn couldn't believe that his very first Pokémon wasn't with him, she would never consider parting with Piplup for an extended period, and she knew that Ash would feel the same with Pikachu. Before she had the chance to ask him where his Infernape was, Ash interrupted her.

"Now I remember!" Ash exclaimed loudly, startling them. "You won the Sinnoh League the year after Tobias did, didn't you?!"

Lucas grinned proudly, and nodded.

"Seriously?!" Dawn gasped, "I didn't know that!" Admittedly, she hadn't paid much attention to the Sinnoh League after Ash competed.

"You didn't?!" Lucas gasped in mock pain, clutching his heart. "I'm hurt!"

"Sorry." Dawn apologised sheepishly.

Lucas faked a heavy sigh, "I guess I'll forgive you." Turning back to Ash, he told him, "I did win it the next year, and lucky for me I didn't have to contend with someone like Tobias. I reckon you would have won it all if he wasn't in it."

"Thanks, but I don't know about that." Ash grinned lightly, scratching his cheek quickly. The Sinnoh League finals seemed so long ago, he had forgotten how much he achieved that day. It was unfortunate that he wasn't able to use Charizard or Infernape against Tobias. They had been too badly damaged against Paul to be able to compete against Tobias the next day.

"Haven't you become modest?" Dawn teased him slyly before growing serious, "I totally believe that you would have won it if Tobias wasn't competing. Or at the least if you could've used Charizard! After all, nobody was able to defeat his Darkrai, but you beat it and his Latios! Just imagine what could've happened if Charizard could've fought!" Dawn declared .fiercely.

"Pikachu!"

"Piplup!"

Both the electric mouse and blue penguin agreed with Dawn's reasoning.

"Thanks Dawn... and you too, Pikachu, Piplup." Ash blushed lightly from the praise. "But there's no point dwelling on it."

' _Are they..?'_ Lucas thought silently, eyeing the two of them curiously, with a slight grin on his face.

"Anyway onto the reason why I wanted to talk you, Ash." Lucas got to the point. "How 'bout a battle?!"

Ash had only one response to a proposition like that.

"Sounds great! Let's battle!" He declared excitedly, and he quickly scoured the area for a decent place to battle. Surrounding the path was mainly trees and shrubs, not leaving much space to battle. Eventually his eyes landed on a small block of lawn, with a few boulders scattered around, and two trees separated by roughly 10 feet by plain short grass. "Over there looks a good place! Nice and simple!"

* * *

Ash and Lucas faced each other with a field of short grass separating them. Dawn was off to the side, sitting on a boulder with her beloved Piplup sitting next to her. Both were anxious to see how this battle turned out.

"Shall we make it a three on three battle, no substitutions, Ash?" Lucas inquired, stretching his arms out with an excited grin on his face. It had been a while since he battled a trainer with Ash's reputation. His Pokémon were starting to get bored, and growing anxious to take on the Sinnoh Elite Four. Lucas pulled out one of his Poké Balls, with a wide grin, "Cool with you if I start things off?"

"It doesn't matter!" Ash smirked, pulling out his own Poké Ball, "I've already selected my Pokémon!"

"So be it!" Lucas yelled, throwing his ball onto the battle ground, "Prepare for battle, Magmortar!"

Ash whistled as the familiar Fire type Pokémon appeared onto the battlefield. The large red, yellow, orange and pink stocky Pokémon glowered down at Ash and raised one of its arms that seemed to be a cross between a paw and a cannon in preparation for battle.

From what Ash could tell, this Magmortar seemed to be slightly larger than the one Paul had, though it had been sometime since he had last seen Paul, let alone his Magmortar. Still he knew the Pokémon that could handle this.

"I choose you, Totodile!" Ash called out, releasing the happily dancing small croc onto the field, the Water Pokémon only came up to the bottom of Magmortar's large pink thighs. You would think that most Pokémon that were dwarfed that much in height and weight would be a little nervous, but not this dancing croc. Totodile did a quick backflip in joy, ignoring the condescending look from his opponent. It had been such a long time since Ash had used him in an official battle, and he couldn't hold back his excitement.

"That's an interesting little guy you've got there." Lucas grinned, it wasn't every day that you saw a Pokémon dance around like that. It hardly seemed intimidated by his powerful Magmortar, and that was something that Lucas couldn't allow to stand.

On the sidelines, Dawn rested her chin on her hand, with a wide smile on her face. "Isn't Totodile just the cutest?" She giggled lightly as Magmortar launched the first attack, which was a powerful beam of flames from one of his cannons and Totodile simply dodged it with a few nice dance moves.

Unknown to Dawn, who was observing the battle, Piplup was staring up at her with a look of utmost horror. He collapsed onto the ground in total despair… To think that his own beloved trainer thought that another Water type Starting Pokémon was even cuter than him. He had never felt so humiliated. With a snap, Piplup was back on his feet, glaring furiously over at Totodile – who had just hit Magmortar in the chest with a well-placed Water Gun – and the penguin Pokémon swore vengeance.

He could just imagine the look on Dawn's face when he stood on top of the unconscious bodies of Totodile and Magmortar. Dawn would turn to him with sparkly dark blue eyes filled with love and adoration, and declare, "Oh Piplup! There is no Pokémon more handsome and powerful as you! You are the star in my eyes and together we will win the Grand Festival!"

"What're you doing, Piplup?" A dull sounding voice interrupted the picture in his head, and he looked up to see Dawn staring blankly down at him. Piplup gave her a sheepish look in response.

"Smash Totodile with Thunder Punch!" Lucas quickly ordered.

Magmortar's left arm was encased by bright crackling electricity and he swung it downwards aiming for Totodile's head, intending to end the match in one devastating blow.

"Dodge it and use Aqua Jet!" Ash swiftly countered with a smirk, and his counter worked perfectly. Totodile flipped back onto his tail, using it as a spring to jump into the air and evade the cannon charged with electricity that harmlessly smashed into the ground. The force sent out multiple ripples through the ground, but the Blast Pokémon was now in a vulnerable position, bent over with a cannon in the ground and Totodile was in the air in front of its face.

Faster than you could blink, Totodile was engulfed in a bubble of water and he quickly shot towards Magmortar, slamming harshly into the Blast Pokémon's face before it had the time to try and counter.

"Magmortar!" Lucas yelled out worriedly as his powerful Fire Pokémon collapsed backwards on the ground.

After slamming the Aqua Jet onto Magmortar, the blow sent Totodile higher in the air and even though he was upside down, the blue croc had a clear view of the downed Magmortar.

"Hit him with another Water Gun, Totodile! Straight into his face!"

"Counter with Thunderbolt!" Lucas ordered firmly.

Upside in mid-air, Totodile let loose a jet of water from in between his large jaws straight towards Magmortar's face, but the Blast Pokémon immediately raised its left arm. The claws receded as the arm became a pure cannon and Magmortar fired a large and powerful bolt of yellow electricity straight at the incoming jet of water. Both attacks connected, and exploded upon impact creating a cloud of dust.

When it cleared, Magmortar was back on its feet and Totodile had landed onto the grass, with a wide toothy grin. Immediately the blue croc delved back into a dance, clearly enjoying the battle while Magmortar simply stared at the dancing Pokémon, with a hint of caution in its gaze. It was clear that this was no ordinary Totodile.

"Amazing… To think that Totodile's Water Gun was strong enough to deflect that Thunderbolt." Dawn whispered in awe, as Piplup watched on intently. Dawn almost let out a giggle of happiness… It had been more than a year since she had last seen Ash battle in person, and she had forgotten how exciting it was.

' _This is Totodile is incredibly powerful… I've never fought one this strong before. I didn't even know a Totodile was capable of becoming this strong!'_ Lucas thought seriously, as he stared at the dancing Totodile with critical eyes. It wasn't particularly fast, but it had incredible evasive movement, and he needed to make it more difficult for Totodile to dance. He needed to force Totodile into the air.

' _That was close.'_ Ash sighed. He was lucky that it was a Fire type Pokémon using an electric type move and so it couldn't be wielded to its fullest capacity. Now, what was his next move?

By now, Lucas would have fully understood at how effective Totodile's dancing was at evading moves and so logically Lucas would try to force him into the air, but Ash wasn't going to allow that. Instead, he was going to make a change to the ground so it would give Totodile the advantage.

"Water Gun all over the battlefield!" Ash ordered the blue croc, and Totodile quickly began firing jets of water all over the battlefield, much to Lucas, Magmortar, Dawn and Piplup's confusion. "Keep firing, don't let up!"

Lucas was so confused at Ash's intentions that he waited to see what Ash was planning and soon wished that he hadn't.

Within a few minutes, instead of standing in a field of short grass, they now stood in thick, wet, slippery grass and mud. This didn't bother Totodile, if anything, dancing around in mud, splattering it everywhere was even more fun, but the same couldn't be said for Magmortar. With its large cannon arms, it made it hard for Magmortar to keep its balance, and Ash was going to use that to his advantage.

"Let's get in close now, Totodile!" Ash swiftly ordered, intending to utilise his field advantage.

"Quick stop it with Thunderbolt!" Lucas shouted.

"Use Aqua Tail on the Mud to block it!" Ash countered calmly.

Magmortar raised its left cannon, while standing perfectly still so it didn't slip in the mud and released a large bolt of yellow electricity straight at the incoming Totodile. With a happy and playful roar, Totodile's tail was engulfed in a clockwise spinning bubble of water and he slammed it into the muddy floor. The blow went up a large wave of mud straight into the incoming electric attack, and successfully stalled it for a moment allowing Totodile to slide harmlessly underneath it.

Lucas and Dawn gasped in shock at how smooth Totodile was moving around in the mud.

"Now use Crunch on Magmortar's leg!"

Totodile slid into a stop only a few feet from Magmortar, soaking Magmortar's face with some mud, blinding it momentarily before leaping towards Magmortar's exposed legs. The large teeth in the croc's powerful jaw were engulfed in a bright white light and he bit into the blast Pokémon's leg. Magmortar let out a loud bellow of pain, and it tried to shrug off Totodile, but in doing so, it lost balance and slipped backwards on the mud with Totodile still clinging to its leg.

"Get it off with Thunder Punch!"

"Retreat with Water Gun!"

Ash's narrowed his eyes when he noticed that it was Magmortar's left arm that tried to knock off Totodile with Thunder Punch when Totodile had been clinging to the inside of its left leg. It would have been more effective to use its other arm. Still the attack missed when Totodile released his hold on his opponent, and quickly released a jet of water from his mouth into said opponent's leg and sent the blue croc flying back.

It was time for Ash to remove Magmortar's ability to use electric attacks.

"Totodile, use Dig to get close to Magmortar's left cannon!"

The dancing crocodile Pokémon didn't hesitate and immediately burrowed underground, sending splats of mud in all directions, including a few splats nearly hitting Dawn and Piplup, much to her annoyance.

"Get up, Magmortar!" Lucas called out hurriedly.

"Morrr!" The large, powerful Fire type Pokémon let out a low groan as it tried to get up onto his feet, but it was proving difficult. Suddenly, after hearing Ash's order, and glancing at the position of Magmortar's left arm, Lucas quickly identified just what Ash was planning. The opening of the cannon was planted directly into the mud.

"Quick fire off a Thunderbolt straight through the ground!"

"Too late!" Ash smirked triumphantly, "Use Hydro Pump, Totodile!"

"Ash's been holding back Hydro Pump this whole time?!" Dawn said anxiously, absolutely enthralled in the battle before her.

Magmortar roared in pain when the electricity that it had begun gathering in its cannon was suddenly snuffed out when a large combination of mud and water burst into his arm. Totodile jumped back out of the mud, panting heavily and let out a toothy grin when he saw that Magmortar's arm was soaked in mud.

"That should nullify your electric attacks, don't ya think?" Ash grinned, "I noticed that all of Magmortar's electric attacks were powered from his left arm, and so with all that mud clogging inside his arm, it would be hard for him to generate any electricity."

"Wow, Ash." Dawn murmured in awe. It amazed her to see Ash beating Lucas, who had won a league, and it just showed how strong Ash had become over the last couple of years.

"Guess I'll go for broke." Lucas let out a grim smile, fully understanding Magmortar's chances now. "Hyper Beam!" Unfortunately for Lucas, he didn't see Ash's eyes light up when he announced his attack.

After successfully getting back on its feet, Magmortar pointed its right cannon at Totodile and unleashed a large and powerful beam of orange energy. Dawn and Piplup were completely astonished at the power of the Hyper Beam as it tore up the battlefield underneath as it headed towards Totodile. Even Ash was taken back by the power of it, but he quickly recovered.

"Totodile, use Protect!" Ash said with a cheeky grin.

Totodile quickly summoned an oval shaped green shield around his body, covering him from all angles and the Hyper Beam slammed into it ferociously. The force of the impact caused Totodile to skid back a couple of metres but his shield held firm, and the orange beam finally dissipated, leaving Magmortar completely vulnerable.

"Time to finish this! Use Hydro Pump!" Ash called out quickly. The teen from Pallet Town couldn't allow Magmortar to fire off another Hyper Beam as it had been incredibly powerful and if it wasn't for Protect, then Totodile would have been knocked out for sure.

The red spines on Totodile's back and tail suddenly glowed a brighter red before Totodile unleashed a powerful blast of water from his mouth that was easily three times the size of his Water Gun and it spun in a clockwise direction. The powerful wave of water slammed into Magmortar – who tried to block it by crossing its arms across its chest – but it was futile. The force sent him crashing back into the muddy ground, unconscious.

Lucas immediately called his fallen Pokémon back into its Poké Ball, and congratulated it for its efforts. He knew that Ash was a strong trainer, but he hadn't expected to be bested so easily. Lucas let out a grin, this was the perfect training before he challenged the Sinnoh Elite Four.

Pulling out his second Poké Ball, Lucas called out, "Prepare for battle, Weavile!" And with a toss off the ball, the Dark and Ice type Pokémon was released onto the field. The small a bipedal, weasel-like Pokémon gave the ground a look of disgust before glowering at the panting crocodile that was covered in mud.

"Use Ice Beam on the ground!" Lucas ordered swiftly, intending to gain control of the battlefield. In the space of one battle, Lucas knew that Ash was too good a trainer to allow him control the battlefield.

Weavile jumped high into the air and unleashed a light blue beam of cold energy from its mouth straight into the muddy field. Instantly, the field was covered in a block of frozen water. Weavile had no problem landing onto the field of ice as the sharp claw Pokémon found walking on ice easier than walking on solid ground.

' _Well, there goes Totodile's Dig attack.'_ Ash thought, slightly annoyed that Lucas had frozen the battlefield but he could still work with it.

"Hydro Pump, Totodile!"

"Dodge it and use Night Slash, Weavile!"

The spines on Totodile's back began to glow as he began to gather the power within to unleash his strongest attack but before he had the chance to fire, Weavile was in front of him with its right claw brought back behind it wrapped in dark purple energy. Totodile was sent flying back several yards after Weavile slammed the Night Slash with an uppercut to the jaw, and in the process of flying back through the air, Totodile lost all of the power that he'd gathered.

"Whoa! That was fast!" Dawn gasped, before looking down at her starter who was watching with an equally shell shocked look on his face. "Did you follow Weavile's speed, Piplup?" The penguin Pokémon shook his head dumbly, in awe of the sight. "At least I'm not the only one."

"Fast…" Ash murmured with a scowl. He didn't know whether Lucas had figured out the weakness in his Totodile after seeing his previous Hydro Pump or if it was just a coincidence. For Totodile to use a full powered Hydro Pump, it took a few seconds for him to charge it up, seconds that he wouldn't need if the blue croc was in an evolved form. This is one of the reasons why most elite trainers had their Pokémon fully evolve so they could muster up their incredible power without any time drawbacks like Totodile.

That didn't matter right now, Ash thought, brushing aside those thoughts. What was more worrisome was how fast that Weavile had closed the gap to attack Totodile. It moved so quickly and with ease on the ice that it made him concerned enough to try and think of a way to remove the icy field.

"There is no Pokémon that can move faster on ice than my Weavile!" Lucas boasted proudly.

"Dile!" The blue croc croaked, getting slowly back to his feet, and gave his sore jaw a bit of a rub.

"Hit Totodile with Dark Pulse!"

"Block it with Water Gun!"

Weavile clasped its claws together and summoned a ball of black and purple circles before firing the circles in the form of a beam that collided with jet of water that Totodile fired from his jaws. For a moment, the two attacks appeared to be even until Weavile's Dark Pulse eventually overpowered the Water Gun.

The small croc was forced to cease firing his water and slide to the right in order to avoid the dark beam.

"Metal Claw!"

Totodile's eyes widened when Weavile appeared to his right with a cocky smirk and the Dark type Pokémon slammed its glowing white claw into the side of Totodile's face.

"Totodile!" Ash worriedly called out seeing the blue croc once again collapse to the icy floor after another fast and hard blow from Weavile. The big jaw Pokémon struggled to get back to his feet, but his body gave out on him and he crashed back onto the ice with swirling eyes.

"Thanks buddy." Ash praised his resilient Water type Pokémon as he returned him back into his Poké Ball. Looking over his opponent's Weavile, Ash debated on whether to use Quilava or Heracross. He'd prefer not to use Pikachu as he had neglected his Johto Pokémon far too much.

His Bug and Fighting type Heracross would have a clear advantage in terms of type, and he also had the ability to fly. However the only long range attacks he had were Hyper Beam and Pin Missile. No, he would keep Heracross for last. Quilava could destroy that ice field, and it won't matter if Lucas simply recreates it. Ash was very confident that Quilava could easily keep up with Weavile's swift movements. Only Pikachu could match Quilava's incredible running speed.

"I choose you, Quilava!" Ash used his signature phrase, and released the volcano Pokémon onto the battlefield.

The blue and cream coloured slim quadruped Pokémon with a bare back glanced around at his surroundings, and palmed the icy floor. Seemingly satisfied by the conditions, in a flash, the back of his head and lower back sprouted hot red flames. Instantly, the ice he stood on began to melt from the intense heat his flames were giving off.

Since Lucas had the first move in the last match, Ash decided to make the first move this time. "Quilava use Flame Charge!"

The flames on Quilava's head and rear stretched out and engulfed his entire body before he shot towards Weavile with incredible speed. It was like a meteor was charging towards the sharp claw Pokémon, and the ice underneath melted from the heat.

"Dodge it, Weavile!" Lucas yelled desperately.

Weavile managed to dodge slide to the right in time as Quilava's flaming body missed its target by a hair.

"Use another Flame Charge!" Ash swiftly ordered, not fazed by Weavile dodging the attack. He had anticipated that.

"Double Team!"

In an instant, Weavile created ten copies of itself, and hid behind the illusion as Quilava passed straight through one of them, dispelling it leaving only nine remaining. All nine Weavile surrounded Quilava, trapping him in a circle. "Now use Shadow Ball!" Each Weavile gathered a purple ball of energy in between its hands causing Quilava to glance around furiously trying to figure out which one was the real Weavile.

"Calm down, Quilava!" Ash said calmly and confidently. This was easily countered. "Use Counter Shield!"

The volcano Pokémon stood up on his hind legs, and like with his Flame Charge, the flames on his head and rear wrapped around his entire body.

"What's Counter Shield?" Lucas frowned, confused. The name sounded familiar but he couldn't quite place it.

The flaming body of Quilava then followed up by jumping into the air and began spinning in a clockwise direction.

"Hit it with Shadow Ball before it's too late!"

The nine copies of Weavile all threw their purple balls of energy straight up at Quilava, but the real one didn't make its mark as Quilava unleashed the true form of his Counter Shield. Multiple strands of fire erupted from all angles of his flaming body, each one slicing through the illusions before one connected with the real Shadow Ball causing a small explosion. Many of the strands of flames also hit the icy surface, and now the ground had all but burned, becoming hard, and broken.

Ash grinned proudly at the sight of Quilava's Counter Shield, it was a technique that he made sure all of his Pokémon were capable of. Quilava's involved a mixture of Flamethrower and Flame Charge. His body was protected by the flames that engulfed his body from attacks that possibly slipped through the Flamethrower.

"That was an impressive move!" Lucas grinned, "Now I remember where I'd heard it from… You and Paul each used it in your match a few years ago."

"For the record, I created Counter Shield." Ash boasted with a smirk, "Although," he glanced at Dawn, "I can't take all of the credit, it was thanks to Dawn coming up with a spinning dodge."

"Oh shucks." Dawn waved him with a blush, "You give me too much credit."

"You two make quite a team, don't you?" Lucas grinned looking knowingly between the two.

"Well, we're best friends, after all." Ash grinned.

"You know it!" Dawn beamed happily.

"Is that right?" Lucas grinned slyly, _'For now anyway, you two may be something more in the future.'_ He had no real clue on whether or not they were attracted to each other, but based on their interaction, something more developing wouldn't surprise him.

"Paul used Counter Shield in our match after I used it during a battle against him months earlier." Ash informed him.

' _I'll need to adapt it as well.'_ Lucas thought. It certainly was a useful technique to learn.

"Use Flamethrower, Quilava!" Ash called out hurriedly, ending their mid battle conversation.

"Dark Pulse, Weavile!" Lucas yelled, his mind switching immediately back to the battle.

Now safely back on the ground, on all fours, the flames on his head and rear sharpened and Quilava released a torrent of flames from his mouth at Weavile. The sharp claw Pokémon immediately retaliated by launching the beam of purple and black circles and the two attacks collided in mid-air. Both Pokémon continued firing their attacks, each determined to overpower the other. Slowly but surely though, Quilava's Flamethrower began to push back the Dark Pulse.

"That's one strong Flamethrower." Lucas praised, before calmly ordering, "Use Ice Beam on the ground!"

While starting to skid back as its Dark Pulse was being overtaken, Weavile looked down at the ground and fired the pale blue beam of cold energy. Ice immediately began spreading out along the ground, straight towards Quilava. The sudden change underneath his feet, caused Quilava to stumble for a moment and his Flamethrower's power fluctuated for a moment allowing Weavile to cease firing Dark Pulse and break away, avoiding the intense flames.

"Shadow Ball!"

Weavile gathered the purple ball of energy in a signal hand this time and threw it at the volcano Pokémon, slamming into his head. Quilava skidded back for a moment, but otherwise he was fine, easily shaking off the blow.

"Now Blizzard!"

Weavile followed up by firing a barrage of frozen ice balls out of its mouth and the sailed towards Quilava.

"Dodge it with Dig! And come out with Flamethrower!"

Quilava immediately burrowed into the ground as the Blizzard sailed harmlessly above.

"Into the air and intercept with Shadow Ball!"

Weavile jumped into the air, gathering another ball of dark purple energy just as Quilava burst out of the ground behind it. With a half spin, Weavile chucked the ball straight into the flames that Quilava spewed from his mouth, and the result was a small explosion.

"Now use Brick Break!" Ash swiftly ordered.

As Weavile landed back on the ground, it's eyes widened in shock as what appeared to be a white rocket suddenly burst out of the cloud of smoke that had formed from the explosion and slammed into it fiercely.

"How is Quilava that fast!?" Lucas gasped in shock as Weavile skidded back along the ground, tearing up the ground somewhat. Quilava landed back on all fours, the white light that had engulfed his entire body, receded.

"Quilava is one of my fastest Pokémon!" Ash boasted, "And while those two earlier Flame Charges may have missed, they still increased his speed."

"Then I'll have to take away that speed of yours!" Lucas snapped, with a cocky smirk. "Into the air Weavile and spin while firing Blizzard… Turn this whole area into ice!"

' _Just what I wanted.'_ Ash smirked, "Dig quickly!"

The second Weavile jumped into the air, Quilava had already burrowed underground.

"What's Ash up to?" Dawn wondered curiously.

"Piplup?" Her starter Pokémon was also curious.

Weavile began spinning releasing frozen balls of ice in all directions and the field was quickly covered in ice but unlike the previous icy floor, this one had many large blocks of ice scattered throughout.

"Even your boosted speed won't be a match for Weavile on ice!" Lucas declared as Weavile landed a top of a large ice block.

"I'd love to take you up on that challenge, but I'm afraid this battle ends now." Ash smirked, startling Lucas.

Dawn was also confused on what Ash was talking about until she remembered a move that her friend had pulled off back in the Sinnoh Conference. Could Quilava know that move..?

"Come up to the bottom of the ice and use Flare Blitz!" Ash shouted triumphantly.

"What?!" Lucas's eyes widened in horror. Quilava could pull off a move that powerful? He had never seen one be able to wield such power!

The Sinnoh League winner didn't have a chance to counter as the entire ice battlefield was engulfed by dark red flames as they shot into the air, immediately vaporising the ice. Weavile was caught in the flames as it roared in pain.

Quilava burst out of the ground, landing on his hind legs, before he flinched heavily as red sparks encased him briefly, as he suffered the recoil of the attack. However he was still able to battle. The same couldn't be said for Weavile.

The sharp claw Pokémon landed onto the soft ground, covered in burns and with swirly eyes. Lucas had no option but to return his fallen Pokémon.

"Thank you Weavile, you were great." Lucas complimented the fallen Pokémon after returning it to its Poké Ball before pulling out his final Poké Ball. "Totodile, and now Quilava… The fact that they could beat my fully evolved Pokémon shows how fantastic a trainer you are. However, you won't defeat this Pokémon. Think you're capable of defeating a Pokémon that can Mega Evolve?" Lucas smirked.

Ash knew what was coming… he didn't know which Pokémon it was but he knew whoever it was, it would be using Mega Evolution. The last time he battled against a Mega Evolved Pokémon, he lost, and he swore that he wasn't going to lose this time.

"Prepare for battle, Scizor!"

* * *

 **End of Chapter**

 **If you like it, then please leave a review. If you don't like it, then don't read it.**


	5. An Aura Bond

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

* * *

 **Training and Preparation arc – Chapter 5 – An Aura Bond**

* * *

Mega Evolution… it was something that Dawn had only heard about in passing. She had never seen it in action, nor did she know much about it. So after hearing Lucas's declaration, suffice to say, the blue haired coordinator was extremely excited to see what it was about.

However she was surprised by the Pokémon that Lucas released onto the field.

Out of the ball appeared a bipedal, insectoid Pokémon with a red, metallic exoskeleton and a Scizorite hanging around its neck.

"A Scizor?!" Dawn gasped, "But isn't that a Bug and Steel type Pokémon?! Quilava's moves would really do some damage!" Her astonishment changed into confusion as her eyes narrowed, "Piplup… what's that around its neck?"

"Pip! Piplup!" The penguin Pokémon shrugged, he didn't know any more about it than her.

"It must be linked to Mega Evolution in some way." Dawn guessed, narrowing her eyes. "For Lucas to choose a Pokémon that is seriously weak against fire types… this Mega Evolution must be incredible."

"We're not dealing with a typical Scizor." Ash clenched his fists tightly noticing the Mega Stone that Scizor wore dangling from its neck.

"Pika!" The electric mouse growled standing at Ash's side. He'd been quiet throughout the match, confident in his fellow Pokémon's abilities but he could no longer remain silent at the sight of the Mega Evolving capable Scizor.

"No! We're not losing again, right Pikachu?!" Ash murmured fiercely to Pikachu.

"Chu… Pika!" Pikachu pumped his fists in excitement.

"Okay, Scizor!" Lucas shouted, touching his Key Stone causing a bright light to emerge from it. Scizor's Mega Stone reacted, releasing its own light. "Mega Evolve!"

The light leaking out of Scizor's Mega Stone suddenly increased and enveloped every part of the pincer Pokémon. When it dissipated, Scizor's form had changed drastically. Its pincers had lengthened, developing serrations and the lower half of the pincers turned white and gained three pointed spikes on the underside. Additional pieces of black armouring appeared on various area of its body. A three-pointed crest on its forehead, striated coverings on its shoulders, and unmarked coverings on its thighs.

"That's Mega Evolution!" Dawn shouted jumping to her feet in excitement. Piplup also looked on in awe. "This is my first time seeing it in person!" She said enthusiastically. "Amazing!"

"Get ready, Quilava… if we underestimate it for a second, we'll lose." Ash cautioned the volcano Pokémon.

"Lava!" The flames on Quilava's head and rear burned brighter than ever as he lowered himself to the ground on all fours, eager to test out his power against a Mega Evolved Pokémon.

Since Ash made the first move in the previous match, Lucas quickly took the opportunity to utilise the first move in this match. "Scizor use Swords Dance!"

Scizor crosses its pincers across its chest and spins rapidly while his pincers were engulfed in a red light and extended outwards for a moment before receding back into its regular shape. The moment it ceased spinning, Scizor swiped his pincers downwards confidently.

Ash knew all too well what Scizor had just done using Swords Dance as his own Scyther knew that same technique. It would be best to keep his distance.

"Flamethrower Quilava!"

"Quick use Bullet Punch!"

Quilava gathered the flames within his mouth and prepared to launch them at Scizor when suddenly Scizor was in front of him with its right arm pulled back and glowing red. The sudden speed caught the Fire Pokémon off guard, and Scizor's powerful pincer slammed into Quilava's head, forcing the volcano Pokémon to skid back a few feet.

Ash scowled at the use of a first priority move, "Hit it with Flamethrower Quilava!" Ash repeated forcefully.

Ignoring the pain, Quilava unleashed the surge of brightly orange and red flames from his mouth smashing into Mega Scizor's chest. Despite being powered up with Mega Evolution, Scizor couldn't hide the grimace of pain from the powerful fire attack.

That was all Ash needed to see… he could win this with Quilava, especially if he could hit it with _that_ move up close.

"Use Metal Claw!"

Scizor responded to the Flamethrower by smacking Quilava had in the head with a glowing white pincer, sending Quilava crashing to the floor. The something happened that Ash wasn't expecting… Quilava was struggling to get back to his feet.

"What the hell?" Ash murmured confused, along with Pikachu who was equally shocked. Quilava barely had a scratch on him at the start of this battle, and suddenly he was barely standing.

"You haven't fought many Scizor, have you?" Lucas gave him a cocky smirk, "Otherwise you would be familiar with Scizor's ability Technician."

"Technician?" Ash wondered curiously.

"I won't get into the specifics, so let's just say that it allows Scizor's weaker moves to become stronger." Lucas boasted, "And then add the effect of Swords Dance, makes my Mega Scizor's attacks extremely powerful."

"I wonder what Ash is going to do now…" Dawn murmured with interest, bouncing on the boulder, clearly enjoying the battle.

As Quilava got back to his feet, Ash smirked, "Well then, I guess I'll make sure you don't hit us again."

"Easier said than done!" Lucas barked, "Scizor use Night Slash!"

With its glowing dark purple law pulled back behind its back, Scizor shot forward towards Quilava, but this time the volcano Pokémon could easily follow its movements.

"Double Team, Quilava!" Ash swiftly countered, and the slim quadruped Pokémon evaded the attack by creating over fifteen clones in an instant. Scizor glanced around in horror after its Night Slash sliced through an illusion and quickly it realised that it was surrounded at all sides.

"Flamethrower!" Ash demanded with a grin "And aim for its wings!"

"Quick turn around and block it!" Lucas retaliated.

All of the Quilava littering the battlefield unleashed torrents of flames from their mouths and Scizor – after hearing Ash's order, quickly turned 180 degrees and raised both its pincers into a cross shaped guard in front of its face. In the end, majority of the flames that made contact vanished before it was shockingly hit in the back, burning its wings.

' _Perfect!'_ Ash beamed, he had no idea how he knew which Quilava was the real one, but the moment Quilava used Double Team, and he was immediately able to pick up the real one. By shouting that particular order, it enabled Scizor to turn its back on the real one.

"Clever…" Lucas growled, annoyed that they fell for such a trick.

"That was great, Ash!" Dawn cheered, wishing that she had her cheerleading outfit with her. She and her Pokémon always enjoyed dressing up to cheer Ash on in his battles. It was only for Ash that she would dress up as a cheerleader for.

Scizor gingerly moved its wings, but the damage had been extensive, and it glowered at Quilava furiously.

"Use X-Scissor!"

"Dodge and use Flame Charge!"

Scizor crossed his pincers and unleashed a large light green blast of energy in the shape of an 'X' but with his exceptional speed, Quilava sidestepped the attack and charged at Scizor. Quilava was immediately engulfed by flames, and he slammed into Scizor who managed to block some of the damage with a cross shaped guard.

"Bullet Punch!" Lucas barked furiously, getting frustrated by Quilava's incredible speed.

"Dodge it, and use Flamethrower!" Ash countered confidently.

Quilava ducked under the glowing red pincer and followed up by firing a stream of flames from his mouth up into Scizor's stomach sending the Bug and Steel Pokémon soaring through the air. Scizor landed painfully on its back.

"C'mon Scizor, I know you can still get up! I have full confidence in you!" Lucas pleaded desperately to his fallen Scizor, and the Pincer Pokémon responded, slowly getting back to its feet. The boy from Twinleaf town gritted his teeth when he saw the state his Pokémon was in, and it didn't help his frustration as Scizor was suddenly engulfed in flames for a moment.

"Nice work, Quilava!" Ash declared, beaming with pride the way his Quilava was battling. "You burned it!"

"Lava!"

Lucas had to concede that the only reason Scizor was still standing was because it had Mega Evolved. If it hadn't, then Scizor would have fallen long ago. Still, he had a couple of secret weapons left. "Use Swords Dance!"

"Stop it with Flamethrower!" Ash hurriedly ordered. While Quilava was currently controlling the match, he couldn't afford to allow Scizor to increase its attack even further. Quilava didn't have a great defence, and with an even further increased attack, Scizor could possibly win this with one well struck attack.

Too late.

"Break it up with Brick Break!" Lucas demanded, the second Scizor's attack went up, he knew he had to block this Flamethrower or it would have all been pointless.

With a glowing white left pincer, Scizor broke through the torrent of flames easily with its increased physical abilities. However the moment it defeated the flames, he was suddenly engulfed by another set, taking damage from its burns.

"Bah!" Ash spat, frustrated at the sight of Quilava's flames being brushed aside with ease. Judging by how heavy Quilava was beginning to pant, Ash deduced that he only had a couple of Flamethrowers left in him.

"Now…" Lucas smirked, "Use Roost!"

"No way!" Ash shouted with wide eyes, and to his horror, Scizor's entire body was enveloped by a blue light, and recovered some of its health.

"Use X-Scissor!" Lucas ordered, and Scizor quickly leapt into the offensive, slashing an 'X' shaped blast of energy.

"Dodge it and use Brick Break!" Ash countered swiftly.

Quilava charged towards the incoming X-Scissor before jumping and with a spin, safely evaded the attack landing calmly back on all fours and continued charging. As he grew closer to Scizor, he was engulfed by strands of white energy signalling his Brick Break attack.

"Block it with your own Brick Break!"

Quilava jumped at Scizor, aiming to ram his body, head first into its stomach like a rocket but was intercepted by Scizor's left pincer, shining with its own white energy. Quilava came off second best from that attack, skidding back several feet towards Ash, and struggled to get back to his feet. This truly looked to be it.

"You've got to get up, Quilava!" Ash called out desperately, as Quilava tried to get back to his feet.

"That's bad." Dawn murmured worriedly. Ash had been in complete control and she thought that Quilava was going to win it all, defeating a Weavile and then a Mega Evolved Pokémon would have been an incredible sight. However momentum had swung in Lucas's favour and she wondered if Ash would be able to defeat it.

"No need to worry!" Dawn whispered firmly, banishing those thoughts. "This is Ash we're talking 'bout! No doubt he's got a plan, right, Piplup?!"

"Lup! Piplup!" The penguin Pokémon agreed enthusiastically.

' _I can't afford to let Scizor hit Quilava!'_ Ash thought determinedly. Granted he still had a Pokémon left to use, and Heracross was not only fresh, but one of his strongest, so Ash had no doubt that he could win against Scizor, but he needed to win this with Quilava. The only Mega Evolved Pokémon that he had defeated without using Greninja's unique method of evolving was Korrina's Lucario and Sawyer's Sceptile. It took a combination of Fletchinder, Hawlucha and Pikachu to defeat Korrina's Lucario, and he was able to defeat Sawyer's Sceptile with Infernape due to his vast experience and skill over the beginner Sawyer.

Against a trainer at his own level, he had never defeated a Mega Evolved Pokémon in a one on one battle without using Greninja. And he was determined to change that right here and now. Quilava still had the speed to dodge Scizor's powerful attacks, but he knew that he couldn't afford to drag this fight out anymore. One more hit from Scizor, and it would be well and truly over.

They needed to win this! Ash, along with Pikachu, and the rest of his Pokémon needed to know that they could come out on top against a powerful Mega Evolved Pokémon in a one on one battle.

"I know you can still win this! We've got to win this!" Quilava's eyes flashed red for a moment as he mustered up his last reserves of strength at his trainer's desperate call.

"Finish it with Giga Impact!" Lucas yelled triumphantly. Scizor swiftly followed the order charging towards the downed volcano Pokémon before leaping into the air just as he was engulfed in bright streaks of yellow-orange energy while the rest of its body was surrounded by purple energy.

A faint red aura began to surround Quilava's body as Scizor closed in, catching Ash's notice.

' _He's about to use Blaze!'_ Ash realised joyfully. If Quilava could just dodge this Giga Impact, then he would have a clear opening to use that move, and with the power of Blaze strengthening it, Ash was confident Mega Scizor would be defeated.

Now on all fours, Quilava made a desperate attempt to dodge the attack, but his front left leg buckled in pain, and he fell back to the ground.

"No!" Ash's horrified shout reached Quilava's ears as the volcano Pokémon saw that he was powerless to move out of the way. He couldn't lose here! He couldn't afford to! He wanted to win! Not being able to dodge, Quilava instinctively lashed out with his energy, intending to block the attack. What happened surprised him and everyone watching.

A green oval shield had sprung out of nowhere to protect Quilava as Scizor slammed into it, the orange and purple energy surrounding it blew away upon coming into contact with it.

As the shield fell away, and Scizor had been forced back a few metres, Ash didn't let this surprising new turn of events distract him like they usually would. Ash quickly retaliated, as if Quilava learning and using Protect had been part of his plan.

"Finish this with Overheat!" Ash yelled out confidently.

The flames on Quilava's head and rear extended and seemed to wrap around each other forming a ball of fire in front of Quilava's mouth. The volcano Pokémon sucked in the ball before combining it with his internal flames and unleashed a large beam of burning white fire that was three times the size of a Flamethrower with red-orange flames spiralling around it. Usually his Overheat would only be twice the size of his Flamethrower, but with the boost in power from Blaze, it had grown in both size and power.

"Dodge it!" Lucas yelled urgently. A Pokémon may not be able to attack or use a defensive move briefly after using Giga Impact, needing to recharge their energy, but that didn't mean they couldn't dodge.

There were many factors that impacted on the outcome of a Pokémon Battle. Type advantages, type disadvantages, level, skill, strength, speed, intelligence, and of course, the battling style and intelligence of a trainer. However there was one factor that was out of reach for Pokémon Trainers. They could try to manufacture it, but in the end, it was out of their control.

This factor is known as luck.

And in this battle, in this moment… Ash received some good luck, which meant Lucas received the opposite, bad luck.

Scizor attempted to dodge the most powerful fire attack behind Blast Burn and Eruption (in the right circumstances) but a certain status condition prevented it from doing so. In the worst possible moment, Scizor froze as it was briefly engulfed in flames from its burns. That was all Quilava's Overheat needed, and Mega Scizor was powerless to prevent the beam of white fire from enveloping it.

Lucas could only look in horror as his Mega Evolved Scizor, a Pokémon that was extremely vulnerable to fire attacks was completely engulfed in fierce, scorching white flames. Through their bond of Mega Evolution, Lucas could almost feel the incredible pain that Scizor felt right now and it certainly didn't help that he could hear Scizor's loud screeches of agony.

Lucas felt the energy from his Key Stone fade away and so he wasn't surprised to see Scizor had returned to its normal form once the flames had dissipated.

Ash looked stunned for a moment as he saw Scizor lying on the ground, back into its normal form and most importantly, it was knocked out.

He did it… Quilava did it!

"He won!" Dawn squealed happily, hugging an equally happy Piplup to her chest. "That was incredible!"

"Thank you, Scizor." Lucas said gratefully with a small sad smile, returning the fallen Pokémon back into its Poké Ball.

"Quilava…" The volcano Pokémon lay tiredly on the ground, the flames on his rear and head had vanished after he used up all of his flames from that last attack but that didn't stop him from beaming with pride. He had bested a Mega Evolved Pokémon, and after defeating a worthy opponent in Weavile. He looked up after hearing his trainer's voice and saw him standing above him. Gratefully, he accepted Ash taking him into his arms.

"You were awesome, Quilava!" Ash praised him, also beaming with pride. Among his friends and rivals, his Quilava probably wasn't given the respect that in Ash's eyes had more than earned. Charizard, Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Greninja, and Heracross were mostly regarded as his most powerful Pokémon because of their accomplishments, but Quilava was right up there with them. He had gone toe to toe with Brandon's Registeel, and put up an incredible fight against Tobias's Darkrai. Heracross may not have defeated Darkrai if it hadn't been for Quilava.

So Ash was extremely proud to see Quilava defeat a Mega Evolved Pokémon along with another powerful Pokémon. He was finally getting rewarded for all of his hard work.

"Take a nice long rest." Ash whispered, returning the exhausted Pokémon back into his Poké Ball for a well-earned rest. As he attached the minimize ball onto his ball, he glanced at Heracross's Poké Ball. He felt bad for a moment about not letting him have a chance to battle, but internally he promised to use him first in his next battle.

"That Quilava of yours is incredible, Ash." Lucas complimented as he approached. "Despite its type advantage, I didn't think Quilava could summon the power to defeat my Mega Scizor. Guess I still have a lot to learn." Lucas chuckled, before holding out his hand, "Thanks for the battle, it was a great wake up call."

Ash immediately shook his hand, "It was a fun battle. It's the first time I've seen a Mega Scizor, and I'm amazed at its attack power."

"I appreciate that, but you've shown me that I've still got a lot of work to do before challenging the Elite Four." Lucas commented, breaking the handshake. "This battle has really opened my eyes."

"How so?" Ash inquired as Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder, looking equally curious.

"How long have you had Pikachu?" Lucas asked curiously, dodging the question.

"From the start of my journey." Ash grinned widely, giving his beloved friend a soft pet under his chin, earning a contended 'Chaaa'. "Pikachu's my very first Pokémon."

"Really? And you've never considered evolving Pikachu?" Lucas frowned.

"Hmm…" Ash pondered for a moment, "I've offered him a Thunderstone a few times in the past, but he's not really interested in becoming a Raichu."

"Pikachu." The electric mouse nodded in agreement.

"He considered becoming one recently though." Ash answered, surprising Dawn who had hurried over to them.

"Really?!" Dawn was shocked to hear it as she remembered quite clearly Pikachu rejecting a Thunderstone after losing to a Raichu. Ash and Pikachu then further evolved their battling style and defeated Raichu.

Piplup was also shocked to hear that his best friend came close to evolving. They both shared a special bond on the basis of their pride in their current form. Neither wanted to evolve.

Ash nodded, "Yeah, but I talked him out of it." The trainer from Pallet grinned widely at Pikachu, scratching the back of his ear softly, "It would have been for the wrong reasons."

"Pika-pika." Pikachu nodded in agreement, remembering how rash he was thinking.

"You're not the kind of trainer that cares about evolving your Pokémon, are you?" Lucas said, looking thoughtful, "I'm the complete opposite. All of my Pokémon have evolved to their final evolution states."

"That's an impressive feat in itself." Ash observed, remembering Misty had evolved a lot of her Pokémon too.

"Now that I think about it, ever since Scizor became able to Mega Evolve, I haven't battled with it once in its regular form." Lucas frowned, "I guess I've become dependent on his Mega Evolved form. I'll need to fix that."

"Yeah," Ash voiced his approval, "Since Mega Evolution is temporary means that the power is simply a boost, but in order to make your Scizor stronger, you've got to improve its natural form."

"Makes sense, I guess." Dawn muttered, making sure to ask Ash to explain Mega Evolution to her in more detail later on.

"I better get going, I'm incredibly inspired right now." Lucas beamed in delight, "It was nice meeting you, Ash, Pikachu and Piplup and of course, it's nice seeing you again, Dawn."

"Nice meeting you too." Ash nodded, "I hope we'll battle again someday."

"Pika!"

"I'm sure we will." Lucas smiled.

"Don't be a stranger, 'kay!" Dawn bid him farewell.

"I won't." Lucas promised before he ran off, heading towards Sandgem Town's Pokémon Centre to heal his Pokémon. One thing had become clear to the young man, and that was he clearly wasn't up against the best upcoming trainers when he won the Sinnoh League. He was still a long way off from battling the Elite Four, but at the same time, he hadn't felt this excited in a long time.

As Dawn watched him run off, she suddenly remembered something.

"Why're we saying goodbye?" Dawn asked Ash incredulously, "He's probably heading to the Pokémon Centre and we have to go too!"

"Ah!" Ash's eyes widened, "You're right! Let's catch up then!"

* * *

 **Post Battle…**

* * *

"I can't believe how awesome that battle was!" Dawn practically shouted in excitement. She and Ash were currently in the Sandgem Town Pokémon Centre lobby as they waited for an update from Nurse Joy regarding Ash's Pokémon. They were sitting on a couch outside the recovery room waiting for the red light above the door to flicker off which would indicate that Ash's Pokémon had finished being treated.

Ash didn't say anything, instead he just stared up at the light deep in thought.

"What's with you?" Dawn huffed, upset that he wasn't sharing her enthusiasm. "You'd usually be jumping about in delight after being someone at Lucas's level."

"Hmm?" Ash glanced at her and gave her a half apologetic smile, "Sorry, just thinking about some things."

"Like what?" Dawn inquired curiously.

"Today's battle… was like a slap in the face." Ash admitted with a bitter frown, "To see Pokémon that I didn't use in the Unova region defeat an opponent that had won the Sinnoh League just further proves how stupid I was."

"Sorry." Dawn looked confused, "But I'm not following."

"I didn't use any of them when I battled in the Unova League." Ash said solemnly, "Not even Charizard. I only used the Pokémon that I caught in the Unova region, and Pikachu, of course." With a quick glance to his left, he saw that Pikachu and Piplup were still playing together. Thanks to Team Rocket, Ash always had to keep a close eye on Pikachu in case they struck. They could do it at any time.

"What?!" Dawn gaped at him in shock. Why on earth would he do that?! "Why?!"

"Because I rarely lost while I travelled through Unova." Ash chuckled emotionlessly. "My rivals, Trip, Stephan, even my friends, Cilan and Iris, I never lost to them. Not once. I never even had to have a rematch with a Gym Leader either, I simply blitz through it all. I won the Junior Cup, as you know, and I also won the Pokémon Club Battle Tournament. Hell, I even forced Alder's Bouffalant some real trouble with Pikachu. The only competition I lost was the Clubsplosion Tournament and that's because I used my inexperienced Scraggy. Up until the Pokémon League, it had easily been my most dominate journey. I was a step above every one of my rivals. So I thought I could continue with the same Pokémon through the Vertress Conference."

Ash then snorted bitterly. "I was quickly shown up in the conference, losing to Cameron, the only rival through my whole journey to ever beat me. If I hadn't been so arrogant and used my other Pokémon, then I would have won the Unova League for sure."

He really didn't know why he decided to tell her all of this since he had come to this realisation some time ago but he had to admit that it felt really good getting it off his chest.

"I'm sorry, Ash." Dawn didn't really know what to say to that. Ash wasn't the type to openly criticise his own performances, much preferring to compliment his opponent. There was really only one thing she could say. "No need to worry." She gave him a wink, "You won't make that mistake again."

Ash gave her a smile, "Yeah, I won't." Suddenly a curious look appeared on his face, "That's right! I've only seen Piplup and Buneary since we met up, how 'bout showing me your Pokémon?"

"Great idea!" Dawn said happily, jumping to her feet and doing a quick little twirl all the while pulling out her Poke Balls. In a bright light, she released her other five Pokémon into the lobby.

Ash immediately recognised Buneary, the small rabbit Pokémon, along with the powerful mammoth looking Pokémon, Mamoswine. The large Pokémon to Mamoswine's left caught Ash's attention.

"Wow Dawn! Your Quilava evolved!" Ash said in delight observing badger like Pokémon with interest. It seemed to be the trend with each regions starting Pokémon, as the second evolution line forms weren't that much bigger than their first forms but when they evolved into their final evolution forms they always seemed to get a dramatic increase in size.

Ash also recognised Misdreavus, the dark bluish-green, Ghost type Pokémon remembering the one that he, Misty, Brock, Harrison and Gary had saved after the Silver Conference. However when he looked at Dawn's remaining Pokémon, his jaw dropped.

"Is that a shiny Umbreon?!" Ash gasped in awe as Pikachu ceased playing with Piplup to also look at the rare Pokémon in wonder. Usually an Umbreon would have crimson eyes and yellow bands around its sleek black body but the one standing before Ash was different. It had light blue bands instead of yellow and instead of red eyes, they were yellow.

"He-he." Dawn giggled in embarrassment, sticking out her tongue, "Sure is! My mother couldn't believe it when she saw her!"

"Where'd ya get it?" Ash had to ask. For him, catching a shiny Pokémon was similar to catching a Legendary, purely in terms of rareness, of course.

"Actually I found it as an Eevee first, and it was battling other wild Pokémon in the forest near Mt. Silver." Dawn explained, "The moves that it was using were so beautiful and elegant. She was startled when I challenged her but she was very eager to battle and I defeated her using my contest skills. She evolved into Umbreon within a couple of weeks and she even performed in the Grand Festival appeal rounds."

"I'm impressed." Ash grinned, "All of your Pokémon great and I can tell that they're a lot stronger than last time I saw them."

"Ash." Nurse Joy interrupted their conversation as she exited the operating room, pushing out a cart that had Ash's three Pokémon sitting on, fully restored. "Your Pokémon are fine now."

Ash stood up and gave Nurse Joy a bow of gratitude, "Thank you very much, Nurse Joy."

"It was my pleasure." She smiled pleasantly before taking the cart away after Totodile, Quilava and Heracross jumped down so they could greet Dawn's Pokémon.

"So Ash…" Dawn grinned slyly at him, "You never told me about Serena."

"Hmm?" Ash looked startled at the question but he quickly grinned, "Sure, I'll tell you all 'bout her, along with Bonnie, Clemont and the rest of my Kalos journey, but in return I wanna hear about your Johto journey."

Dawn glanced at the time, and saw that it was getting late in the afternoon, "How 'bout we talk about it over dinner?"

"Sounds good to me!" Ash replied eagerly just in time for his stomach to let out an audible grumble of hunger.

Dawn giggled, "You haven't changed, have you?"

Ash just smiled.

The two friends would talk for hours over their journeys, into the wee hours of the night before heading to bed. One thing was for certain, the two of them were happy to be together again.

* * *

 **Outside of Veilstone City…**

* * *

"So... What're we waiting for?" A very bored blue haired coordinator asked her friend, leaning against a large rectangular sign that had the words, 'Welcome to Veilstone City' imprinted on it. They had travelled for over a week to finally reach their intended destination.

"Will you relax?" Ash sighed, annoyed with her persistent pestering. She had asked the question every five minutes. "They'll be here any minute now."

Dawn scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest angrily. "You said that five minutes ago." She grumbled.

Ash opened his mouth to retort, but the sound of an incoming vehicle cut him off. Looking towards the road leading into Veilstone City, a white van slowly approached them, driving towards them. When close enough, it turned off the dirt road, and stopped 20 feet from them.

Ash quickly approached it, with Pikachu hurrying to side, and Dawn cautiously followed him, holding Piplup in her arms. The moment the passenger door was flung open, Dawn saw a familiar small blue creature leap out into a startled Ash's arms.

The blue haired coordinator's eyes widened at the sight of the small, blue, canine Pokémon in Ash's arms. He had black legs and torso, a blue tail, and a yellow collar. He had rounded bumps on the backs of its forepaws, a black mask and red eyes. She also noticed a small wooden figurine hanging from his neck. "Riolu?" Dawn muttered, shocked to see him again.

"How're you doin', Riolu?" Ash asked cheerfully, ecstatic to see the Fighting type Pokémon again. "It's great to see you again!"

"Great!" Riolu declared happily, wrapping his paws around Ash's neck, hugging him tightly, although fortunately for Ash not enough to choke him. "I've missed you!"

Ash blinked, startled at the voice and he pulled Riolu off him. Riolu grew nervous as Ash just stared at him. "Did you just talk?"

Riolu grinned widely. As Ash held him, he pulled off the wooden figurine off his neck and placed it around Ash's.

"Pika-pika?" Ash looked over at the electric mouse to his right, and Pikachu was giving him a confused look.

"You okay, Ash?" The boy from Pallet Town looked over to his left to see Dawn and Piplup each giving him concerned looks. "Riolu spoke to you like he always does."

"Only you and other Pokémon can understand me, Master Ash." The small blue canine informed him calmly as Ash lowered him back onto the ground.

"Ash, just call me Ash, please." Ash said uncomfortably, "There's no need to call me Master."

As Pikachu, Dawn and Piplup glanced at each other in worry, an elderly chuckle snapped them out of it. Out of the driver's seat of the green van came a familiar elderly man, the same man that they had given Riolu back to over a year ago.

"Don't be so alarmed." Riolu's trainer assured them. "Back when you all saved my beloved Riolu here, a bond began to form between him and Ash that was connected with their aura. Over the past couple of years, their auras began to grow stronger and the bond between them also strengthened. Through that bond, Ash can now understand everything that Riolu says."

"That's amazing!" Dawn beamed with wide eyes, staring at Ash and Riolu in awe. Turning back to the elderly trainer, she couldn't help but wonder, "With his aura, will Ash be able to understand all of his Pokémon?"

Even Ash looked over at the elderly man, curious for the answer.

"I'm afraid that it doesn't work like that." The old trainer told them, "The Riolu family are one of the few Pokémon capable of wielding aura and so the ability for Ash to understand Riolu is because of their aura."

"Too bad, that would be a really useful ability." Dawn sighed sadly.

"However over time, and the greater Ash becomes at wielding his aura, he can begin to understand his Pokémon's feelings. Master that, and you could become unstoppable." Riolu's trainer grinned at the young man.

Riolu broke away from Ash and walked over to his caretaker. With a sad look, Riolu stared up at the man that had raised him for years, and tears began to fall from his eyes. Immediately he was engulfed in a tight hug.

"It's okay, buddy." The elderly man whispered, tears falling from his own eyes. "No matter where you go, I, along with everyone back at the kingdom will always love you, and wish you the best of luck."

As Riolu and his trainer parted ways, Dawn looked over at Ash. "Is Riolu coming with you?"

Standing straight up, Ash nodded, his own eyes starting to water at the touching scene, but they wouldn't fall. "I received a call the other day from Mr. Barker." Ash signalled over to the elderly man, "Stating that Riolu was ready to leave the kingdom and that he wanted to come with me."

Dawn nodded, but immediately frowned. "I thought Riolu was supposed to be the kingdom's new guardian, how can he leave?"

"Mr. Barker assured me that there were other Riolu in the kingdom ready to step up. The Riolu you see before you was just far more skilled than the others." Ash explained. "After all, he is the only Riolu I've heard of that was capable of using Aura Sphere."

Riolu and his former trainer broke apart, and Riolu lowered his head, wiping away his tears. Mr. Barker meanwhile walked over to Ash and held out his hand. Ash immediately shook it, and the elderly man placed his other hand on top.

"You will look after him, won't you?" Mr. Barker asked firmly. He needed to hear the answer.

"With my life, I give you my word." Ash vowed determinedly.

"I know you will." Mr. Barker smiled, letting go of his hand. "It was nice seeing you again, Miss Dawn."

Dawn blushed lightly, not used to people calling her 'Miss Dawn.' "Same here."

Mr. Barker and Riolu had one final goodbye and as the elderly man got back into his vehicle, Dawn approached Ash. "So are we heading to Johto next?" Internally she wondered what was so dangerous about this.

Ash didn't reply for a moment, intently watching Riolu wave goodbye to the retreating vehicle. "No, not yet. There's one last thing that I need to do." Ash turned Dawn and the blue haired coordinator swallowed the gasp that rose in her throat at the sight of the deadly serious look on Ash's face. It was a face that Dawn had rarely seen, only when confronting Team Plasma and the Legendary Pokémon raging out of control did Ash ever get this serious.

"I'm going to ask you again… are you sure you want to come with me? What I'm going to do is not only foolish but extremely dangerous." Ash warned her.

Dawn swallowed but gave him a determined look, "If it's dangerous, then I'm not letting you go alone."

"Thanks Dawn." Ash smiled gratefully at her, "I appreciate it."

Dawn huffed, and placed her hands on her hips, glaring at him. "Now stop stalling and tell me what you're up to!"

"Okay then." Ash whispered, before looking her straight in the eyes. "I'm gonna catch Spiritomb."

* * *

 **End of Chapter**

 **If you like it, then please leave a review. If you don't like it, then don't read it.**


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